Under new guidelines, perpetrators of domestic abuse – including emotional, psychological or online abuse – will be more likely to go to prison.

Previously, the guidelines had only recommended jail time for abusers who seriously physically injured their victim. But updated advice released for judges by the Sentencing Council of England and Wales says that convicted domestic abusers should be given “a custodial sentence in the majority of cases” if they have been seriously physically violent and/or caused severe “emotional/psychological harm”.

The advice is expected to have a significant effect on how domestic violence cases are treated in court, and recommends that domestic violence and threats be treated more seriously than if the same violence occurred outside of an intimate relationship (e.g. in a fight on the street).

“The domestic context … makes the offending more serious because it represents a violation of the trust and security that normally exists between people in an intimate or family relationship,” the council states.

Domestic violence charities have backed the updated guidelines. Sandra Horley, chief executive of Refuge, said: “These new sentencing guidelines are a huge step forward for women escaping domestic violence… I am glad that the courts will be encouraged to recognise that everybody has the right to feel safe in their own home.”

Everything you need to know about how domestic violence is being tackled in the UK