Domestic Violence - guidance for Practitioners

Guidance for practitioners is available from a number of sources

Safeguarding Children Abused through Domestic Abuse

This is a Greater Manchester procedure hosted on the Greater Manchester Safeguarding children website, it provides multi agency practice guidance for all agencies working with children and families where there is domestic abuse. It can be accessed here -

Further information about domestic abuse services in Tameside can be accessed here.

Responding to domestic abuse: A handbook for health professionals

This handbook published by the government gives practical guidance to healthcare professionals on working with patients who may have experienced or are experiencing domestic abuse. It can be accessed here

Local Domestic Abuse Initiatives for all Agencies....

MARAC (Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference)

The MARAC is part of a coordinated community response to domestic abuse, incorporating representatives from statutory, community and voluntary agencies working with victims/survivors, children and the alleged perpetrator. The MARAC aims to:

Share information to increase the safety, health and well-being of victims/survivors – adults and their children;
Determine whether the alleged perpetrator poses a significant risk to any particular individual or to the general community;
Construct jointly and implement a risk management plan that provides professional support to all those at risk and that reduces the risk of harm;
Reduce repeat victimisation;
Improve agency accountability; and
Improve support for staff involved in high-risk domestic abuse cases.

You can download a practitioner information leaflet about MARAC here

You can download an information leaflet for victims about MARAC here

You can download the MARAC Referral form and DASH Risk Assessment - NB word version available at bottom of page.

IDAAS (Independent Domestic Abuse Advocacy Service)

The main purpose of independent domestic violence advisers (IDVA) is to address the safety of victims at high risk of harm from intimate partners, ex-partners or family members to secure their safety and the safety of their children. Serving as a victim’s primary point of contact, IDVAs normally work with their clients from the point of crisis to assess the level of risk, discuss the range of suitable options and develop safety plans.

You can download a practitioner information leaflet about the IDAAS service and how to refer here.

TEL: 0161 331 2000 Monday - Friday - 8.30 - 5.00

Specialist Domestic Violence Court

These courts are a fundamental part of the government's efforts to improve the support and care provided for victims of domestic violence. The Specialist Domestic Violence Court programme promotes a combined approach to tackling domestic violence by the police, the Crown prosecutors, magistrates, courts and probation together with specialist support services for victims, which situates the court and the Criminal Justice System as part of a community-wide response to domestic violence.

Key features of the courts include:

trained and dedicated criminal justice staff with enhanced expertise in dealing with domestic violence, including magistrates specially trained in dealing with domestic violence cases
cases clustered on a particular day to enable all agencies to focus their specialist resources
tailored support and advice from Independent Domestic Violence Advisers.

Tameside Sanctuary Housing Scheme

Help to Survive Domestic Abuse and Remain in Your Own Home

The Sanctuary Scheme helps people feel safer by adding security measures to their property. It will be tailored to your individual needs but can include:- alarms, stronger windows and doors, security lighting, surveillance cameras or even cutting down fences to give you a better view outside. Changes can be made to any type of property - your own or one rented from a private land lord or registered social land lord.

You can download an information leaflet about the Sanctuary Housing Scheme and how to refer here

Who is this for?

For victims of domestic abuse:

living in the Tameside area
who are separated from an abusive partner or family member and
wish to remain safely their own homes.

Who runs the scheme?

New Charter Housing Trust working with some other housing providers and members of the Tameside Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership - such as the Police and the Council

There is no charge for this service - but your safety needs and your property will be assessed to check the scheme is suitable for you.

A referral has to be made by an agency - Social Care, Health Services, Police or a Housing Officer.

You can find out more by contacting New Charter Housing Trust on 0161 331 2133 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Co-ordinated Action Against Domestic Abuse (CAADA)

CAADA is a national charity supporting a strong multi-agency response to domestic abuse. Our work focuses on saving lives and saving public money. CAADA provides practical tools, training, guidance, quality assurance, policy and data insight to support professionals and organisations working with domestic abuse victims. The aim is to protect the highest risk victims and their children – those at risk of murder or serious harm.

CAADA provides a wealth of resources and toolkits for IDVAs and frontline practitioners and middle managers involved in domestic violence risk identification and Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) work. These can be accessed here

Women's Aid

Women's Aid is the national domestic violence charity that helps up to 250,000 women and children every year. Specialist domestic and sexual violence services are provided across the UK by voluntary sector organisations, many of which are within the Women's Aid national network. These organisations provide a variety of services for women and children. More information about these services and a series of publications to help practitioners in working with women and children can be found here

National Centre for Domestic Violence (NCDV)

The NCDV specialises in providing free, fast legal support to survivors of domestic violence, usually resulting in an emergency injunction being obtained from the local county court within 24 hours of first contact. This free service is provided to everybody, irrespective of financial circumstances, sexual orientation, race or gender. The NCDV website provides information for survivors and practitioners on how to access this help, here

National domestic violence delivery plan: annual progress report 08-09

This annual report from the government sets out the progress that has been made against our national domestic violence delivery plan. It can be accessed here

TSCB provide interagency training on domestic abuse and it's impact on children and families

Attachments:
File	File size
MARAC Agency Generic referral form.doc	120 Kb

Tameside SCB