Stafford review

That Staffordshire Police should remind all Senior Officers and staff with responsibility for determining Right to Review applications of the importance of independence and transparency, and to consider the impact on this of any previous involvement with the individuals or case concerned when deciding who should undertake the review.

That the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Domestic Abuse Commissioning and Development Board should consider current arrangements for engaging GPs in the multi-agency response to domestic abuse and what developments may optimise the benefit of such engagement.

That the Stafford Community Wellbeing Partnership seek assurance from UHNM on the uptake and effectiveness of Emergency Department training in recognition of and response to patients with mental health problems, and that their arrangements for risk assessment and provision of access to mental health services are robust and being applied consistently.

That the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Domestic Abuse Commissioning and Development Board should promote professional awareness of available protective orders and the significance of these as indicators of risk.

To work with partners and access funding to help find support for pets where women need to leave their homes to go into Refuge.

For Staffordshire Women’s Aid to feel more confident in challenging decisions made by agencies – this will be addressed internally, and a new escalation policy will be developed.

For Staffordshire Women’s Aid to increase its capacity to support victims through mental health problems via the one-year secondment with a mental health practitioner and an increasing partnership relationship with the mental health trust.

For Staffordshire Women’s Aid to work with partners in exploring ways of better identifying signs of suicide and working together to respond to these risks.

For Staffordshire Women’s Aid to clarify with other agencies the limits, as well as the benefits, of our counselling service.

For partners to work together to better understand the continual abuse, such as that experienced by the victim, that can be perpetrated through social media and other such channels.

For partners to work together to more quickly identify the continual presence and patterns of coercive control and to avoid seeing incidents as isolated.

Staffordshire Police Operating Model to include Local Policing Team Vulnerability Hub Roles and Responsibilities for the identification and management of risk with specific regard to existing Domestic Abuse Force Policy and Procedures.

Staffordshire Police to continue delivering Domestic Abuse training developed in Partnership with the University of Gloucester ensuring continued emphasis on the identification and investigation of Harassment and Stalking.

Staffordshire Police to continue their drive for improvement with the Standards and Quality of Investigation with specific regard to: - Reporting, Responding & Resolving.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct also made a recommendation which has been accepted by the organisation that: Staffordshire Police should deliver training as soon as is reasonably practicable to all call centre staff, staff who may from time to time handle calls and all staff who use CMS260 on effective cross-referencing of incidents and crimes and the importance of this and effective lateral research and systems checks.

Provide emergency portals at UHNM with training in Domestic Abuse and its links with Mental Health.

UHNM is currently undertaking a self – harm audit of which any lessons to be learnt will be addressed.

The quality of the recording of information onto ECINs has been highlighted during the process of writing the IMR document. As such, Stafford Borough Council will be revising and reviewing the Terms of Reference for the Partnership Hub.

Develop pathway for GP engagement by the wider Multi-Disciplinary Team for instances of domestic abuse.

Standardise practice for each DHR that the perpetrator records are sought using the Independent Chair to request access on behalf of the Community Safety Partnership.

GP training on control and coercion in terms of Domestic Violence and in its wider context to ensure they are aware of their duties to share concerns and understand the changes within the legislation.

Ensure new referral pathways are actively promoted with all agencies. Done

Reminder to be sent to all community staff to ensure they visit the “correspondence address” as noted on Rio.

A further review of the services Domestic Abuse processes takes place and make any identified amendments to ensure that there is flexibility in decision making in relation to cases where there is a specialist provider involved.

Revisit the referral pathways with all specialist domestic abuse services and come to an agreement on joint working cases.

NSCHT Staff to continue to have access to Domestic Abuse awareness training to strengthen knowledge relating to non-molestation orders.