Clare's Law used but over 140 women in West Mercia Police force area to check past abusers

The figures, which run from December 2014 to December 2015 show that 142 applications were made to West Mercia Police under the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, otherwise known as Clare's Law.

The figures were released as a result of a Freedom of Information request made to West Mercia Police.

The law enables both men and women to ask police for background checks that could reveal whether they are at risk of attack or abuse.

If an application is made under the scheme, police will carry out checks and if they show a record of abusive offences, or other information indicating a risk, they may release some information.

It also gives potential victims a "right to know", which allows police to disclose sensitive information about a partner even if an individual has not asked for it.

The figures also showed that from March 2014 to November 30 2014, 81 requests were made.

Of those 24 were initial contacts, 17 face-to-face meetings and eight resulted in a disclosure being made. The outcome of a further eight was unknown.

From December 2014 to December 2015 there were 45 initial contacts, 26 face-to-face meetings, 60 disclosures made and 11 where the outcome was unknown.

The requests were made under a "right to ask" or the "right to know" scheme.

In 2014 there were 69 "right to ask" requests made by applicants with their knowledge and 87 from December 2014 to December 2015.

In 2014, there were 11 applications made under the "right to know" scheme which came from police on the behalf of the victim without their knowledge. This rose to 53 from December 2014 to December 2015.

The requests over the 21 month period came from 222 women and one man.

Jan Francis, chief executive of West Mercia Women's Aid, said: "While we welcome any advances such as Clare's Law, it is hindered by the reliance on the victim asking for a disclosure.

"This usually happens once the abuse has started and the damage has been done. This limits its effectiveness."

Clare's Law, which came in to force in March 2014, is designed to provide victims with information that may protect them from an abusive situation before it ends in tragedy. The scheme allows the police to disclose information about a partner's previous history of domestic violence or violent acts.

The initiative is named after 36-year-old Clare Wood who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 2009.