Lincoln review

Ensure the OASys termination plan is completed incorporating the assessment of risk and need at the time.

Recording of contacts should be improved to consistently document contact and actions and to ensure information related to identified and presenting risks is included in each case.

Ensure the overarching aims of sentence planning and emerging patterns of behaviour are not lost in the day to day practical issues of managing those prisoners who display challenging and disruptive behaviour.

A primary aim of service delivery should be consistency of offender manager wherever possible. Where this cannot be achieved, a process should be developed to ensure effective handover of the case between offender managers and prison establishments to ensure the aims of sentence planning and risk management are prioritised.

Project managers to review all contact plans and associated case notes to ensure staff are following the plan. Caseload supervision will include checks on contact plans.

Contact Policy to be amended to include the standard practice of contacting agencies involved if contact is not established, including safe and well checks. This practice will be shared with service users at sign-up to the contract.

Case Closure Policy will be reviewed to include recorded discussion and approval from the project manager.

Staff and managers must satisfy themselves that contact has been established either through NCHA staff, agencies or the police before closing support. NCHA staff will complete a DASH risk assessment with service users at final support session.

NCHA staff will provide contact details for national domestic abuse helplines and other services relevant to the service user before a case is finally closed.

Staff will offer support to obtain a critical marker on the address at the point of the needs and risk assessment for new service users and at point of move-on for refuge service users.

Project Managers to review all initial support plans to ensure staff are reviewing them within 30 days. Caseload supervision will include checks on review periods.

Remind staff not to rely on an act of physical violence to take action against the perpetrator. Coercive control is an offence and can be a predictor of high risk of harm and requires consideration for charges to be brought.

Ensure police officers responding to allegations of domestic abuse are able to identify and fully investigate coercive controlling behaviour.

To discuss this case at the Acute Medical Unit Governance Forum in order to share learning.

Hampshire Constabulary’s Response and Patrol Command should review the guidance given to frontline response officers with regard to their responsibilities for completion of a detailed and informed PPNI form when dealing with vulnerable people.

Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust to lead a piece of multi-agency work to consider the prevalence of personality disorder in perpetrators involved in Domestic Homicide Reviews and Child Serious Case Reviews in Lincolnshire over the past five years. The purpose would be to consider a process for identifying potentially dangerous abusers in order to undertake a full forensic assessment with a view to mitigating harm and identifying risk management interventions to provide public protection. The findings to be shared with The National Domestic Homicide Review Panel to inform national developments.

Continue to raise awareness of the role of coercive control in domestic abuse cases.

Consider expanding current multi-agency training to include information on the Eight Stage Timeline leading to Domestic Homicide developed by Dr Jane Monckton Smith.

Write to The National College of Policing to request consideration be given to The DASH risk assessment review including questions relating to Dr Jane Monckton Smith`s Eight Stage Domestic Homicide Timeline.

Ensure multi-agency domestic abuse training includes information on the importance of having all details of the perpetrators previous domestic abuse charges ,convictions and behaviours. This information is key to understanding the level of the risk posed when making a thorough risk assessment.

Consider developing a “Managing Perpetrators Strategy” which captures all existing structures in Lincolnshire for managing domestic abuse perpetrators.

Consider requesting that the National Domestic Abuse Perpetrators Strategy addresses the issues of improving processes when working across area boundaries.

Write to Her Majesty`s Prison and Probation Service nationally to share the learning from this review relating to the need to share information regarding an offenders risk of harm at the pre-release stage. The sharing of information refers to those offenders that do not meet the MAPPA threshold or the other current public protection categories e.g. sexual offences against children. This review suggests consideration be given to extending the practice of pre-release multi-agency meetings on all relevant prisoners as conducted at HMP Lincoln.

Consider developing a published list of contacts in every community safety partnership area to facilitate the timely gathering of relevant information across area boundaries to inform the preparation of DHRs and to avoid unnecessary delays.