Welwyn Hatfield review

All agencies who use DASH should ensure it is applied consistently, and using professional curiosity, to take into account previous assessments, background information and context already known about those being interviewed in relation to the abuse.

To help ensure consistency and quality, all agencies should consider introducing a formal process of random management checks in relation to the assessment and escalation of risk to different household members in domestic abuse cases. This should be backed up by a rolling programme of Internal Audit review.

All agencies should ensure cases are referred to MARAC where the referral criteria are met.

Children’s Services must ensure that before making a key decision in a case which involves domestic abuse, they discuss this with the parties concerned and in particular the victim of the abuse.

The Hertfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership should provide a standard set of information accessible to victims of domestic abuse. This might take the form of a simple leaflet, made available to all agencies.

All agencies should consider how they will conduct safety planning with known victims of domestic abuse.

The Hertfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership should seek assurance from agencies that they have in place a strategy which they will follow if victims do not respond or refer themselves for services. (E.g. retracting evidence, not turning up for appointments, not going to Sunflower, etc.)

Hertfordshire Constabulary should ensure information and support is provided to victims of domestic abuse and their families during the Criminal Justice process.

Local Housing Authorities, their agents and partner Registered Providers, should review their approach to managing tenancies, assessing housing needs and homelessness a) to ensure safeguarding referrals are made if there are any indicators of domestic abuse, b) that advice given to a tenant takes account of the consequences to a victim or perpetrator of domestic abuse living in or returning to an existing tenancy and c) to ensure appropriate advice and information on support services is made available to both victims and perpetrators of domestic abuse.

All agencies should ensure that they take a probing, inquisitive approach to access, interpret, question and share available information for the purposes of risk assessment and risk management in domestic abuse cases, in line with established local and national legislation and guidance. Where in doubt, the balance should be in favour of sharing, not withholding, information within this context.

All relevant agencies should consider the potential impact of the wider family context – “Think Family” – when carrying out assessments in relation to individuals within the family unit.

In the case of an unexpected parental death Hertfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership should consider mirroring the Bereavement Planning meeting and review process in use for the Rapid Response to Child Death, to include identification of a single lead agency.

All agencies should develop and deliver training to front line staff which picks up the points highlighted by this review, such as the skills needed to take a curious, questioning, and whole family approach to domestic abuse. Hertfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership should consider the potential for training to be jointly developed and delivered.

The Hertfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership should develop a flowchart, to be disseminated to all staff in all agencies, which sets out the process by which domestic abuse reports, referrals and assessments are carried out, from initial contacts, DASH assessments, and through to more detailed agency assessments. This could form part of the joint training suggested in the previous recommendation.

The Welwyn Hatfield Community Safety Partnership should engage with local faith groups, in particular independent churches, to promote and make available domestic abuse awareness training.

Chairs of the Hertfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership Executive together with the Chairs of Adult and Children’s Safeguarding Boards should consider how best to engage faith groups and independent churches in its work.

Hertfordshire Domestic Abuse Partnership should consider current trends in domestic abuse, anticipated future demands and the resourcing implications.