Domestic Violence (Hansard, 19 September 2003)

§ Mr. Hancock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice and assistance he gives to local authorities to help them deal with cases of domestic violence. [127280]

§ Ms Blears
The Crime Reduction Programme (CRP) Violence against Women Initiative (VAWI) is an evidence-based programme to find out which approaches and practices are effective in supporting victims of domestic violence. In July 2000, some 34 multi-agency victims focused projects were commissioned and independently evaluated. The main findings are due to be published in early 2004. In addition, a series of concise reports, which will be aimed at promoting good practice to a range of practitioners, will start to become available from the end of 2003. These guides will help local authorities and others improve the way in which they deal with domestic violence cases.
In addition, a significant portion of the £14 million funding package announced in February this year will go towards assisting Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships, in which local authorities are a key partner, to improve their performance in tackling domestic violence over the next three years. Another portion of that funding is being used to fund a three-year project by the Local Government Association aimed at supporting local authorities in tackling domestic violence.

§ Mr. Hancock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to improve the collection of data on domestic violence. [127282]

§ Ms Blears
There is a Crime Reduction Programme (CRP) Violence Against Women project looking at data collection and we will be producing guidance on data collection arising out of the evaluation of that project.
The Policing Performance Assessment Framework, which is currently being developed, will examine the police's current data collection in its work to develop meaningful indicators to measure police performance.

§ Mr. Hancock
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will institute a national policy to ensure consistency in the way that police forces deal with the perpetrators of domestic violence; and if he will make a statement. [130204]

§ Ms Blears
Home Office circular 19/2000 gives guidance on police handling cases of domestic violence.
The National Centre for Policing Excellence (NCPE) is currently developing updated guidelines for police handling of domestic violence cases.