EVERY day we read about violent crime on our streets. It's one of the public's biggest fears.

But the fact remains that most crime takes place much closer to home.

More than 200 woman are killed by their husbands or partners every year in this country.

And domestic violence makes up at least a quarter of all reported violent crime - by comparison street crime makes up just two per cent.

The worrying statistics do not end there. Across England and Wales, an incident of domestic violence is reported every minute.

Blackburn mum Anna Jones is one of those statistics, a woman who almost lost her life to a violent husband. But that was not the end of the matter. The hiding she took at the hands of Aledwyn Jones at their home nearly three years ago sent her on a downward spiral.

She turned to drink and to harming herself, then voluntarily put her children into care because she could not cope.

Today, Anna Jones is calling for more support for victims of domestic violence, who continue to suffer long after the beatings have stopped.

There is, of course, support out there for those who need it.

But after reading Anna's story, it is clear that more can be done to help women like her.