Ambitious £3.2m project to tackle domestic abuse in Hertfordshire

The £3.2 million scheme will create a national ‘centre of excellence,’ offering a transformational opportunity to address the problem which can include spousal abuse, as well as that against children and parents.

Welcoming the initiative, Hertfordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner David Lloyd said: “This ambitious project will help towards our commitment to decrease the level of violence against women and girls, and also male victims and children.

"Previous work has also identified a significant need to help those parents and siblings who can be abused by young or grown up children.

“This funding will enable the delivery of effective and integrated interventions, which include early identification of abuse in all its forms, to either to stop or prevent an escalation of violence.

"Our Prevention First strategy sets out that it is far better to stop crime happening initially than to catch and punish an offender after they gave harmed a victim.

"This funding will enable us to take a major step forward in reducing the incidents of violence and abuse which happen behind closed doors.”

Head of Victim Services and Commissioning Kevin McGetrick said: “Ideally we would not have victims of abuse in the first place and that is why a stated objective within the County Domestic Abuse Strategy is to ‘Act before harm.’

“This ground-breaking initiative will seek to tackle head-on the root cause of abusive behaviour and is something victims themselves have been calling for.

“It will see Criminal Justice and Healthcare professionals coming together to offer solutions to ingrained abusive behaviours while providing enhanced support for victims and their families.”

Many domestic abusers are repeat offenders with 83 percent of male offenders repeating their offences within a six-month period.

This makes intervening to stop their pattern of behaviour paramount to protect victims.

> The £3.2 million comprises £2 million from central government and £1.2 million in pledged funding from multiple local authorities.

The joint programme will run initially for two years and concentrate on domestic abuse perpetrator referral services, including an intervention delivery hub.

This is expected to contribute significantly to safer victims and communities.