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CHAPTER 14: Domestic Abuse

Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Police Notification Procedure
  3. All Agencies
  4. Children's Social Care


1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 See Section 8, Domestic Abuse, of the Recognising Vulnerability of Children in Particular Circumstances Procedure for definition and recognition of the impact on children of domestic abuse.
1.2 This operational procedure and guidance is based on the standards set by 'Working Together to Safeguard Children', HMSO, 20106, pp.262-265.
1.3

Police are often the first point of contact with victims and they (or any other agency that becomes aware of domestic abuse) should safeguard the victim and:

  • Ascertain whether there are any children living in the household or if the victim is pregnant
  • Make a preliminary determination of the degree of exposure of the children to the incidents of abuse and its consequent impact
  • Provide the victim with information on local support services and refuge details, taking into account any ethnic or cultural issues (i.e. National Helpline, local specialist agencies / help-lines, Woman's Aid, Victim Support - details available from local domestic abuse forums)


2. POLICE NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE

2.1

Where there are children under the age of 18 years in the household, the police officer attending a domestic incident must:

  • Send a copy of the attendance form to the relevant police domestic abuse unit (DAU) and
  • Confirm that they have provided relevant information leaflets on local support services and refuge details (or provide an explanation if this has not been accomplished)
2.2 The police should advise parents verbally that a record will be given to other agencies. However, the varied circumstances of police attendance may mean that this does not always happen explicitly. Nevertheless, police will still need to share this information (including outcome of the risk assessment) with other agencies as described below (See Information Sharing and Confidentiality Procedure).
2.3 Police will electronically forward a copy of the domestic incident notification form from the DAU to the local Children's Social Care office within 48 hours of the incident.
2.4 Police will also electronically forward a copy of each domestic incident notification to health designated professionals.
2.5 The victim should always be asked if they are happy for their details to be passed to Victim support. If they agree Victim Support should be notified, using direct data transfer.


3. ALL AGENCIES

3.1 This procedure applies to all practitioners working with children. Other organisations e.g. refuges should also be encouraged to adopt them.


AGENCY HISTORY
3.2 On notification / disclosure / suspicion of domestic abuse within a family, all agencies must immediately consult existing records and consider what else is known of the family and any previous domestic incidents.


INFORMATION SHARING
3.3 Multi-agency work and information sharing (see Agency Roles & Responsibilities Procedure) is crucial in safeguarding children in situations of domestic abuse.
3.4 Each case should be judged on its own merits, but there are times when best practice is to share information / make referrals, even when this is initially without the knowledge of the parties involved or contrary to their specific wishes.
3.5 The decision to share or not to share information of domestic abuse incidents or concerns must be recorded, with its rationale.
3.6

Information must be shared with Children's Social Care if:

  • There has been one serious or several lesser incidents of domestic abuse where a child is resident in the household, regardless of whether or not the child is present at the time of the incident e.g. injury to parent - see: 'Working Together to Safeguard Children', HMSO, 2010, p.263
  • An alleged victim is a child her/himself
  • A parent is fleeing domestic abuse, leaving a child/ren with the allegedly violent partner
  • A parent and child/ren are fleeing domestic abuse (the victim may return to the home and/or the alleged perpetrator may seek them out)
  • The alleged victim is pregnant
  • There is a baby in the household
  • There have been previous serious incidents
  • There is a history of aggressive abuse or 'stalking' by the perpetrator (this may include convictions)
  • There are / have been allegations of sexual assault or rape
  • The child/ren have witnessed or been distressed through hearing incident/s of domestic abuse
3.7

Consideration must be given to sharing information if there are or have been:

  • Parental difficulties e.g. mental health, substance misuse, parental learning disability
  • Previous child welfare concerns
  • Concerns about abuse of animals
  • Knowledge of any particular stressors in the family e.g. disability or health related, housing / immigration / legal / financial / social isolation
  • Separation / contact issues


4. CHILDREN'S SOCIAL CARE

4.1 After checking the history of the family, Children's Social Care must decide how to respond to each communication of domestic abuse.


AGENCY CHECKS
4.2

The Children's Social Care duty manager may decide to treat the communication as 'information and advice' in the following circumstances:

  • The report concerns a minor incident, without injury and
  • There are no other indicators of risk and there are no high risk indicators in the police assessment
4.3 Further information from other agencies may be required before a decision can be made about the appropriate threshold of response.
4.4

In making the decision about seeking information prior to / after direct contact with the family, consideration should be given to the:

  • Likely impact to the child and the adult victim, including the possibility of increasing the risk of domestic abuse
  • Need for an approach that takes full account of information available on home circumstances


DIRECT CONTACT
4.5 The police should have already provided the victim with information leaflets
4.6 Careful consideration should be given to the purpose and method of contacting the family, particularly in relation to the wording of any letters sent out to the family.
4.7 Where the threshold criteria for a Children's Social Care Initial Assessment or a Section 47 Enquiry are not met, consideration should be given to the use of universal services (e.g. undertaking a Common Assessment (CAF)) if this is thought to be less likely to exacerbate the situation.


INITIAL ASSESSMENT / SECTION 47 ENQUIRIES
4.8 A minimum response of an Initial Assessment must be undertaken There has been one serious or several lesser incidents of domestic abuse where a child is resident in the household, regardless of whether or not the child is present at the time of the incident e.g. injury to parent - see: 'Working Together to Safeguard Children', HMSO, 2010, p.263.
4.9 Initial assessments should also be undertaken for lesser incidents where there are possible concerns about the welfare of the children, where the family is in a high risk category, and is high risk on the police assessment.
4.10 More minor incidents should be considered individually in the knowledge that the cumulative affects of apparently minor domestic abuse can also cause serious emotional harm to the child. The vulnerability of the child should always be fully considered.
4.11 Where the family refuse to co-operate with an initial assessment and there are clear indications that the welfare of the child/children will be compromised as a result of the domestic abuse, consideration should be given to undertaking a Section 47 Enquiry.
4.12

A Section 47 Enquiry should always be undertaken include where:

  • A child has experienced harm during any domestic abuse incident (even if inadvertently injured)
  • A child has witnessed another being seriously injured or abused, for instance where the abuse involved sexual assault or attempted strangulation or the use of weapons or threats to kill
4.13

Section 47 Enquiry should usually be undertaken where:

  • There has been an escalation in frequency and/or severity of incidents and the victim is pregnant or there is a very young baby in the household
  • A child is known to be involved in a violent relationship, e.g. a young person may be involved in a relationship with a violent girlfriend / boyfriend
4.14 Whenever an initial assessment is undertaken children's social care must liaise with all agencies involved with the family and must see the child/ren with the consent of a person with parental responsibility. If consent is not given and where there are clear indications that the welfare of the child/children will be compromised as a result of the domestic abuse, consideration must be given to instituting a Section 47 Enquiry.


ASSESSMENT PROCESS
4.15 Opportunities should be provided for both partners to be interviewed separately, and in a safe setting.
4.16

Many victims of domestic abuse feel unable to disclose its existence or severity. The following issues should be discussed with the alleged victim as part of any assessment:

  • Severity, frequency and history of any abuse, threats etc
  • Circumstances of the abuse and if compounded by drugs / alcohol
  • Extent and nature of the children's experience of the abuse
  • Perception of risk to the child/ren
  • Threats used - consider all household members
  • Available options - immediate and in the future
  • Factors that prevent the victim taking action to protect self and children
  • Whether it is possible to share victim's perceptions with alleged perpetrator
4.17 The alleged victim of abuse should be advised of the availability of legal advice and the options available through the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and the Family Law Act 1996 Part IV.
4.18 The interview with the alleged perpetrator of the abuse should be planned carefully between the worker and their line manager. Care must be taken not to disclose addresses or make unsafe contact arrangements.
4.19 If there is an acknowledgement of abuse, the interview should clarify the points above. Where there is no acknowledgement of abuse and it is not possible to share the victim's account, there should be general discussions about the children's welfare.
4.20 The children should be interviewed (if of sufficient age and understanding) and their experiences explored. It is important to consider the possibility that a child may have experienced direct abuse her/himself and /or may be inhibited from disclosing concerns due to fear of (further) domestic abuse or (further) abuse.


INTERVENTION
4.21 If a child protection conference is held, the Conference Chair must be informed that domestic abuse is an issue and consideration will be given to any need to exclude the violent partner for part or all of the meeting.
4.22

The local authority may pursue legal options of:

  • Relocation of alleged perpetrators of abuse
  • Injunctions attached to a Prohibited Steps Order
  • Exclusion conditions attached to an Emergency Protection Order and Interim Care Order
  • An injunction under the Housing Act 1996 (chapter III of Part V) to restrain anti-social behaviour with power of arrest attached, where abuse has occurred or is threatened
4.23 Women with children fleeing domestic abuse may receive support from the housing department. Children's Social Care should be included in planning the course of action if relocation is necessary.

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