Everyone's talking about the credit crunch and how it will affect us all. But what about the thousands of women who live with their own economic crisis on a daily basis and have done so for years?

Eighty-nine per cent of respondents who took part in a recent survey by Refuge, the national domestic violence charity, told them that 'financial abuse' was a common part of their experience of domestic violence.

Domestic violence kills two women every week in England and Wales alone. One woman in four will experience physical violence at some time in her life.

But there are other ways in which an abuser can control a woman's life which are just as, if not more, devastating. This abuse includes controlling techniques like taking all of a woman's money, strictly limiting what she is allowed to spend, putting debt in her name and refusing her access to benefit entitlements.

Some of the key themes emerging from the research showed that:

• Almost half the sample who had experienced economic abuse reported that their abuser had interfered with their education and employment
• Forty four per cent of women who were still 'allowed' to work were harassed by their partner at work and economically exploited by being made to hand over their wages
• Just under three quarters of respondents reported that the abuser controlled their access to economic resources through taking control of their bank account and refusing to let them have money of their own
• Eighteen per cent of respondents also reported that their partner had forced them to take out loans, credit cards, contract mobile phones in their own name but then denied them access to these items
• Forty one per cent of respondents identified economic abuse as having a negative impact on their emotional health
• Forty one per cent of respondents who had experienced economic abuse reported being economically dependent on the abuser and feeling a total loss of control
• The majority of the women and children experiencing economic abuse who were interviewed were what the Government considers to be financially excluded, with around one in three of the respondents accessing Refuge's domestic violence services, not having a bank account (compared to one in twenty national average)

Nicola Sharp, head of policy at Refuge, said: 'Money is a worry for many of us in the current economic climate, but for women experiencing economic abuse, their financial situation can seem hopelessly bleak.

'If an abused woman has no money of her own, has massive debts which her partner has run up in her name and has never been allowed by her partner to practice the money-management skills most of us take for granted, starting out on her own can be a terrifying prospect.

'Women coming to Refuge often flee with no more than the clothes they are wearing and effectively have to start over from scratch.

'But those are only the ones that we have been able to reach. What about all the rest? We hope this guide will help women to understand their rights and give them the confidence to reach out and get help.'

Charlotte (not her real name), a survivor of domestic violence, told Refuge: 'I lived with economic abuse for years. My ex didn't need to hit me to control me. He simply took all my money and then made me ask him for every penny I ever needed.

'He'd regularly deny me money for basic purchases such as deodorant or milk and nappies for our daughter.

'He was cunning too. Unbeknown to me he put all the bills, credit cards and any big purchases we'd made in my name so when I finally found the courage to leave him I was saddled with a whole host of debts and commitments I'd never signed up to.

'I live in fear, even to this day, of getting yet another demand for money owed for something I have no clue about.

'Thanks to the team at Refuge I've been working to sort out the debts and start my financial planning from scratch. It's a huge, daunting task but I'm getting there and feel liberated by being allowed to do the simple things myself.'

To support its financial abuse work Refuge is launching a support tool for women who are currently experiencing domestic violence or who may be trying to set up a new financial life after abuse.

'You can afford to leave' has been funded by HBOS Foundation and can be accessed via Refuge's website: www.refuge.org.uk