A DRIVE to highlight and tackle domestic abuse is about to focus on problems experienced by children.

As the summer holidays begin, Hambleton Community Safety Partnership is turning its attention to young people, who can be affected by abuse in many ways.

The move is the latest phase of the year-long Don't Suffer in Silence campaign to increase the profile of one of the district's hidden crimes.

In the past six months, the campaign has used Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Father's Day to push home its message.

It has been so successful that neighbouring Richmondshire Community Safety Partnership has now joined forces with Hambleton.

In the next few weeks, posters featuring a young girl covered in paint and bearing the words "For this little girl... the fun stops here" will appear in both districts.

National statistics show that at least 750,000 children a year witness domestic violence in the UK.

In 90 per cent of domestic violence incidents, children will be in the same or neighbouring room.

Catherine McNaughton, the anti-domestic violence co-ordinator for both partnerships, said: "Children can be affected by domestic violence in lots of different ways.

"One thing that is certain is that is does have an impact on them.

"The effects tend to vary according to how old they are, the level of violence, the length of time the violence has been happening and how much support they have had from others around them."

She said that although some people believe children do not know what is happening because they have not seen the violence, most children are aware of what is going on.

She said: "They often feel responsible and may need to be reassured that it is not their fault. It may not be obvious to them and could be causing them a lot of pain and unnecessary suffering.

"Some youngsters are afraid to talk for fear of causing further worry and upset.

"It is often a huge relief to children to have this silence broken and be able to share their thoughts and feelings instead of bottling them up."

Last year in Hambleton, there were 355 reported incidents of domestic abuse -120 more than in 2002. Of those, 160 were repeat attacks.

Nationally, the Women's Aid charity said 106,118 children received support for domestic violence last year.