Mel B reveals women approach her 'in tears in Aldi' and open up about their experience of domestic abuse as she joins a panel to mark the 50th anniversary of Women's Aid
- The National Domestic Abuse Helpline can be called, for free and in confidence, 24 hours a day on 0808 2000 247
- For free and confidential support, connect to a Women's Aid support worker via their instant messaging service at chat.womensaid.org.uk
Spice Girl Mel B has revealed she has gone from having fans shouting 'all right Scary' to her in the street to women opening up to her in supermarkets about their experiences of domestic abuse.
The singer has campaigned on the issue for several years after she filed for divorce from Hollywood movie producer Stephen Belafonte in March 2017, following allegations of abuse he has repeatedly denied.
Mel has since received an MBE in 2022 for services to charitable causes and vulnerable women and became a patron of Women's Aid in 2018.
Speaking on a panel in recognition of the 50th anniversary of Women's Aid on this year's International Women's Day on Friday, Mel revealed that women open up to her all the time now, and she even gets stopped in supermarkets.
Mel confessed: 'Before, it was like "all right Scary", now I get women coming up to me literally in tears telling me their story when I'm in Aldi or Sainsbury's.
![Mel B has revealed women approach her 'in tears in Aldi' and open up about their experience of domestic abuse as she joined a panel to mark the 50th anniversary of Women's Aid in Mayfair on Friday](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/08/18/82231461-13174767-image-a-10_1709923839120.jpg)
Mel B has revealed women approach her 'in tears in Aldi' and open up about their experience of domestic abuse as she joined a panel to mark the 50th anniversary of Women's Aid in Mayfair on Friday
![The singer has campaigned on the issue for several years after she filed for divorce from Hollywood movie producer Stephen Belafonte in March 2017, following allegations of abuse he has repeatedly denied](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/08/19/82231411-13174767-image-a-29_1709924521984.jpg)
The singer has campaigned on the issue for several years after she filed for divorce from Hollywood movie producer Stephen Belafonte in March 2017, following allegations of abuse he has repeatedly denied
'Now, it's more of a conversation. It's not really the conversation that you want to be having but I'm so glad that I'm experiencing that and I can talk about it.'
Mel spoke on a panel alongside Women's Aid chief executive Farah Nazeer and Amanda Cupples, general manager at Airbnb for Northern Europe.
Victoria Newton, editor of The Sun, hosted the event at a members' club in London, and they discussed the importance of addressing domestic abuse and creating safe spaces for survivors within the workplace.
Mel claimed her ex was banned from the set of America's Got Talent by Simon Cowell while she was a judge on the show as she 'acted nervous' when he was there.
She said: 'Work was my safest place that I could ever be because I knew that he couldn't get to me at work because Simon Cowell banned him from being on set because he realised when my then-husband was around I acted nervous or wouldn't be my authentic self.'
Mel said HR teams should learn to look out for signs of domestic abuse to help others.
She told the panel she would stay on set for an hour or two after they had finished filming as she 'did not want to go home' and if there was someone at work who could have supported her 'there and then, I would've probably felt like I could've talked about it much sooner'.
Speaking of domestic abuse, she said: 'It just needs to stop and it's not going to stop unless we do something about it.'
![Mel confessed: 'Before, it was like "all right Scary", now I get women coming up to me literally in tears telling me their story when I'm in Aldi or Sainsbury's.](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/08/19/82231455-13174767-image-a-27_1709924515516.jpg)
Mel confessed: 'Before, it was like "all right Scary", now I get women coming up to me literally in tears telling me their story when I'm in Aldi or Sainsbury's.
![Mel said HR teams should learn to look out for signs of domestic abuse to help others](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/08/19/82231457-13174767-image-a-28_1709924518656.jpg)
Mel said HR teams should learn to look out for signs of domestic abuse to help others
![She said: 'Work was my safest place that I could ever be because I knew that he couldn't get to me at work because Simon Cowell banned him from being on set because he realised when my then-husband was around I acted nervous or wouldn't be my authentic self'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/08/19/82232619-13174767-image-a-30_1709925062730.jpg)
She said: 'Work was my safest place that I could ever be because I knew that he couldn't get to me at work because Simon Cowell banned him from being on set because he realised when my then-husband was around I acted nervous or wouldn't be my authentic self'
![The star added she thinks women do not come forward to report abuse out of fear of not being believed](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/08/19/82231409-13174767-image-a-26_1709924511874.jpg)
The star added she thinks women do not come forward to report abuse out of fear of not being believed
The star added she thinks women do not come forward to report abuse out of fear of not being believed.
She added: 'I would never have thought to report anything that happened in my 10-year marriage, because number one, I didn't have any proof because I never went to the doctor, I covered up all my bruises.'
Asked what it means to her to be a patron of Women's Aid, Mel said: 'I still have to pinch myself.'
She continued: 'Women are the strongest ever form of a human being because we're resilient but we're not that resilient if we're not believed, heard and supported.'
Mel described feeling 'so at home' when she visited a refuge with Women's Aid, and added that she had therapy there.
Farah said, as the charity enters into its sixth decade, they want to 'create a society where domestic abuse is not tolerated'.
She said: 'It's no longer society's dirty little secret, it's something that is spoken about but it is not tolerated, that it is unacceptable and when people see it, they break the barriers of what should be personal and private.'
Farah said employers can 'raise awareness, change culture, put in place policies and training that normalise the fact that domestic abuse is not tolerable, it can be spoken about and providing mechanisms for people to seek help'.
![She added: 'I would never have thought to report anything that happened in my 10-year marriage, because number one, I didn't have any proof because I never went to the doctor, I covered up all my bruises' (Mel and Stephen pictured in 2016)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/03/08/19/68558219-13174767-The_pair_began_dating_in_February_2007_after_they_met_on_a_set_o-a-31_1709925176434.jpg)
She added: 'I would never have thought to report anything that happened in my 10-year marriage, because number one, I didn't have any proof because I never went to the doctor, I covered up all my bruises' (Mel and Stephen pictured in 2016)