About this page. This page summarises a Domestic Homicide Review published in the Home Office DHR Library. The full report is available at the source link below. Victim and perpetrator names are not included in extracted summaries on this page.
Source · Domestic Homicide Review
Durham review
CSP: Durham
Published: April 2023
Extracted: 11 recs
Statutory domestic homicide review under section 9 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004. Source: Home Office DHR Library.
View full report (PDF) ↗
Source: Home Office DHR Library
Summary
The review identified missed opportunities by agencies to recognise domestic abuse indicators, explore Adult A's social circumstances, and share information effectively, particularly given Adult A's vulnerabilities related to mental health and alcohol use. Concerns were also raised about the risks associated with online dating for vulnerable individuals.
Extracted recommendations
| # | Recommendation | Addressed to |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A coordinated national response is needed to increase public awareness around the dangers related to the use of certain internet sites and how these may be used to target and prey on individuals with vulnerabilities. | Government (National) |
| 2 | Police and Crime Commissioner, Sexual Violence Implementation Group, and Safe Durham Partnership to implement a local action plan to increase public awareness around the dangers related to the use of certain internet sites (as outlined in the previous recommendation). | Police and Crime Commissioner | Sexual Violence Implementation Group | Safe Durham Partnership |
| 3 | All agencies to ensure that the key lessons learned from this review are disseminated to staff and included in existing and future training. These key areas include: • Ability to recognise domestic abuse indicators. • Importance of further exploration regarding an individual’s home/social circumstances. • Need to undertake enquiry when information is shared indicating abuse from the victim or third parties, even if no direct disclosure is made. • Importance of ensuring action is being taken to address concerns and not assume it is being dealt with elsewhere. • Understanding of the dangerous interplay between substance use, mental health and domestic abuse and the need to ensure that focus on other difficulties does not prevent domestic abuse from being recognised or victims engaged with. • Awareness and understanding of domestic abuse referral pathways. | Durham Constabulary | Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust | North Durham Clinical Commissioning Group |
| 4 | Development of the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) to be progressed as a matter of urgency, and to include procedures in place to ensure adequate feedback mechanisms to agencies regarding their referrals. | Safe Durham Partnership |
| Durham Constabulary | The Constabulary must reinforce to front line staff. o Mandatory minimum standards for submission of a Vulnerable Adult Form where there is a concern (if not related to a domestic abuse incident as vulnerable adult issues will be addressed on the domestic violence form). o Mandatory minimum standards for submission of a Vulnerable Adult Form where the incident involves incidents involving self harm and attempted suicide (or threats of). | Durham Constabulary |
| Durham Constabulary | With immediate effect all incidents tagged domestic abuse, or closed as domestic abuse, by communications staff will be reviewed by the domestic abuse specialist sergeants for compliance. Safeguarding Detective Sergeants will read all domestic related incidents reported to the Police during the prior 24 hour period. The incidents are defined by the National Standard or Incident Recording (NSIR) closing code and domestic abuse qualifier. The Safeguarding Detective Sergeants will ensure all domestic incidents have been dealt with appropriately, such as positive action taken in relation to domestic incidents, crime correctly recorded within time scales and investigated, Domestic Violence forms and risk assessments submitted. If these actions have not been completed the matter will be brought to the attention of the Senior Management Team at the Daily Management Meeting and the incident reallocated to the attending officer or uniform response for completion of actions. These checks will continue until such times as the force is satisfied that the Front Line understands and complies with force policy with regard to submission of Domestic Violence forms and carrying out proactive arrests of perpetrators. | Durham Constabulary |
| Durham Constabulary | To circulate written guidance to operational officers regarding the minimum standards as to when a Vulnerable Adult form should be submitted and educate staff around issues of mental health, self harm and alcohol. | Durham Constabulary |
| Durham Constabulary | Relevant safeguarding National Centre for Applied Learning Technologies (NCALT) packages to be reviewed by the Safeguarding SMT to ensure all relevant training packages are mandatory for all officers, not only safeguarding officers. | Durham Constabulary |
| North Durham Clinica | Best Practice would be to ensure that Adult Safeguarding and Children’s Safeguarding training strategies and training programmes include appropriate levels of Domestic Violence training for staff in Primary Care. | North Durham Clinical Commissioning Group |
| North Durham Clinica | Ensure that when reviewing policies and procedures that they are sensitive to the special risks to and needs of older women who are victims of domestic abuse. This is an on-going action from previous DHRs. | North Durham Clinical Commissioning Group |
| Tees, Esk and Wear V | To increase awareness, knowledge and understanding within the Trust workforce in relation to the domestic abuse agenda. | Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust |
| Recommendations extracted from the published report. Source: Home Office DHR Library. View full report ↗ | ||