Delivering the hardest news about a partner's past

The M.E.N spent an afternoon with two of the officers dealing with the day-to-day reality of domestic abuse

- By CHRIS SLATER

INSIDE Bury police station, Sergeant Keith Gal-ley gathers up several sheets of paper and puts them inside a folder. The information written on them has taken police staff several weeks to com-pile. And for one local woman, it could have a huge impact on her future life decisions.

For the woman, who is in her 20s and has chil-dren, has asked for disclosure under both 'Clare's Law' and 'Sarah's Law'.

Clare's Law, often known officially as the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, gives people the right to know if their current or ex-partner has any previous history of violence or abuse.

It is named after Clare Wood, from Salford, who was murdered by her ex-boy-friend in 2009, and has now been in operation for a dec-ade.

Whilst Sarah's Law allows people to request informa-tion from the police about a person who may be a risk to a child.

It is named after eight year-old Sarah Payne who was murdered in 2000 by a con-victed sex offender.

The information has to be given directly. It can be done via video call, but on this occasion Sgt Galley and his colleague PC Tom Stansfield, are on their way to deliver the news face-to-face.

They are invited into her home and make their way into the living room.

After introducing themselves, PC Stansfield reads aloud a preamble, which he has to deliver word-for-word, before moving on and telling her the information, garnered from the national police database.

The M.E.N is not allowed to report what she is told and she isn't allowed to tell anyone else. She first has to sign a disclaimer promising she won't divulge it to anyone without first asking the police for permission. She appears visibly moved and on the verge of tears as the information is read to her.