Issue - meetings

Resolved: to note the report and to receive additional information about familial abuse.

Geeta Subramaniam-Mooney (Head of Crime Reduction and Supporting People) introduced the report; the following key points were noted:

• Lewisham previously had the highest reported levels of domestic violence in the country.
• The Safer Lewisham Partnership had made the reduction of domestic violence a priority and had focused resources on a range of initiatives, including; a specialist domestic violence court, individual domestic violence advocates, multi-agency risk assessment conferences (MARAC), victim support and refuges.
• In response to the broader context of inequality and violence facing women and girls; the government and the Mayor of London had developed violence against women and girls (VAWG) strategies which included plans to eliminate:
  • Domestic violence
  • Rape and sexual violence
  • Prostitution and trafficking
  • Sexual exploitation
  • Female genital mutilation (FGM)
  • Forced marriage
  • Honor based violence
  • Stalking and harassment

• In Lewisham, it was recognised that there was good information and data about domestic violence but there was a lack of information in the majority of the other areas.
• Lewisham had piloted the Multi Agency Sexual Exploitation (MASE) conference to improve coordination between agencies. The learning from this pilot had now been adopted by all London boroughs.
• Lewisham had also commissioned Imkaan (an organisation committed to tackling violence against women and girls) to review the borough’s violence against women and girls strategy and make recommendations for improvements.
• As a result of the consultation, a new combined service was being created to develop a single approach to tackling VAWG in the borough.

In response to questions from the Committee, the following key points were noted:

• A tendering process for the new service was underway. The new combined service would start in April next year.
• No decision had been taken about the location of the new service. There were no particular domestic violence hot spots in the borough. Crimes were distributed across Lewisham.
• The new service would be required to find its own premises; however there would be an expectation that it would have a presence at Lewisham Police station – which was a considerable source of referrals.
• The service would support all victims, including boys and men.
• There had been 49 responses to the consultation on the violence against women and girls strategy. There was concern that this number was low. However, it should be noted that there were only 69 responses to the Mayor of London’s violence against women and girls strategy consultation, so in comparison the response to the Lewisham consultation was good.
• The review highlighted some gaps in the provision of support services in Lewisham. Of particular concern was the experience some victims identified of approaching agencies for support and not being believed.
• It was proposed that the new organisation would develop an approach to prevention and awareness raising - as well as initiatives to encourage healthy relationships.
• There had been five reviews into domestic homicides in the previous two and a half years, which highlighted a number of issues but also enabled Lewisham to consider the combined dangers of poor mental health, substance misuse and violence.
• There  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4