Against the background of a continuing increase in victims of domestic violence see king protection through the courts in Co Clare, a women's refuge is to be established in Ennis this autumn. The refuge will be the second in the mid-west region.
Since 1974, Adapt House has operated in Limerick city, while Adapt's Kerry Women's Refuge in Tralee - established four years ago - serves Co Kerry.
The director of Clare Haven Services, Ms Mary Fitzgerald, says the provision of the refuge accommodation is essential. She says: "It is not acceptable that women and their children from Clare have to travel to other counties for accommodation."
She adds there is often the problem that there are no facilities for women and their families before they are transferred to accommodation elsewhere.
The refuge, which will contain six emergency units, is part of a larger housing scheme being developed by Respond on the grounds of Our Lady's Hospital in Ennis.
Figures released by the Courts Service for Co Clare to the end of July 1999 underline the need for an additional refuge in the region, showing that 439 women sought court orders in that period, compared to 339 in the corresponding period in 1998 - an increase of 33.9 per cent.
It is the fifth successive annual increase since 1995. Such are the growing numbers coming before the courts in Clare that Judge Albert O'Dea has recently made the move to dedicate a whole day of the Ennis District Court to hearing cases. Previously the cases were heard prior to the Friday sitting of the court.
A feature of the statistics from Clare last year revealed that 23 parents sought court orders against adult children in the county.
Though no such court orders were sought in the Listowel and Tralee areas, the co-ordinator of the Kerry Women's refuge, Ms Colette Garvey, says it is a growing feature that the refuge has come across.
She says, "In our experience it is relatively new to us. It can be devastating for a mother who has just got rid of an abusive husband to discover that the eldest son, for example, has taken over the role of the abuser and she finds this very, very difficult to handle."
According to Ms Garvey, the Tralee refuge, which contains six self-contained units, is full almost all the time.
Last year, the refuge accommodated 84 women and 172 children with the mean average stay being 19.8 days. During the year the refuge received 455 support calls.
Last year, the numbers of women seeking court orders in the Listowel and Tralee court areas increased by 7.1 per cent on 1998 figures.
While the increase in Clare is substantially larger than the increase in court orders sought in the Tralee and Listowel areas and in marked contrast to figures from Limerick for last year, the director of Adapt House, Ms Monica McIllvanney, said the numbers of women suffering from domestic violence who were choosing to go before the courts were "minuscule".
Despite there being a decrease of 23.6 per cent on 1998 figures on women seeking protection in Limerick's courts in 1999, Ms McIllvanney points out that last year there was a 119 per cent increase in families staying at the refuge on the previous year.
Ms McIllvanney states that there is still a huge gap between the numbers availing of the services and those who go that step further and take the legal option.
Ms McIllvanney says women can be in more danger after they have taken action to leave an abusive situation, which may inhibit use of the courts.
In some rural areas or urban areas where there is a lack of Garda resources, this fear might prevent women seeking redress through the courts, she says.
"That, along with variations in how solicitors, gardai and judges interpret the law, are deterrents to women going to court."
Greater awareness of the services available to victims of domestic violence is advocated by all service-providers.
In July, the Kerry Women's Refuge is to distribute a booklet, You Are Not Alone, containing advice for victims of domestic violence and for their families and friends to every household in Kerry.
However, the need to have a consistent approach with each agency involved in the legal system in relation to domestic violence is seen as the key to more women availing of their legal options, according to Ms McIllvanney.
Such an approach has been working in Duluth, Minnesota in the US since the 1970s with positive results.
Ms Denise Charlton, director of Women's Aid, says Clare Haven Services has already carried out tremendous work in relation to the Duluth model.
Women's Aid is negotiating with the Department of Justice to get funding for three pilot projects based on the Duluth model in an Irish city, town and village.
Ms Charlton says she is confident of a positive response from the Department.
While acknowledging the obvious value of the Duluth model, Ms McIllvanney says there is a need to develop a model that is specific to the Irish situation.
Clare Haven Helpline: 065-6822435; Adapt House: 061-412354; Adapt Kerry Women's Refuge 066-7129100.