Women harmed after Wiltshire police failed to disclose partners’ violent pasts

Force finds at least two women were harmed after failings in its response to their inquiries under Clare’s law

At least two women were harmed after a “catastrophic” failure in the way a police force dealt with applications under Clare’s law, which gives people the right to ask whether a partner has a violent past, it has emerged.

Wiltshire police has reviewed more than 3,500 applications made under the domestic violence disclosure scheme over an eight-year period and identified 25 failures.