Clare's Law (Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme)

Clare’s Law was given its name after the murder of Clare Wood. Clare, who lived in Salford, was tragically murdered and set on fire at the hands of her former partner, George Appleton, in February 2009. Throughout her relationship, Clare had made many reports about George Appleton to the police in the time leading up to her murder. These complaints included sexual assault, criminal damage, threats to kill and harassment. Despite these reports, Appleton was still able to enter Clare’s house and murder her.

During the murder investigation, the family of Clare Wood learned about the criminal history of Appleton which included violence to women in the form of threats, harassment and kidnapping of a previous partner. Clare’s family also found that Appleton was previously jailed for six months for breaching a restraining order and again a year later in 2003 for three years for harassment towards a woman. Clare’s family campaigned for a change in legislation to protect people like Clare. The campaigning was successful and resulted in the creation of Clare’s Law.