Dear
Mr Mortimer
Leicester
City Council takes domestic violence seriously and is continually
working to reduce domestic violence through prevention, support and
protection. Domestic Violence has a place within a number of strategies
and plans in the Council for example: Adult Protection Policy and
Procedures, Children and Young Peoples Plan, Community Safety Strategy,
the Homelessness Procedures, Housing Management Policies and the Supporting
People Strategy. All these strategies and plans make specific mention
of domestic violence and how the local authority and its partners
respond to a range of needs.
Leicester
City Council is one of a number of key partners working in partnership
with the Leicester Domestic Violence Forum to plan and develop services
for anyone who has, or may be, affected by domestic violence in Leicester
and the surrounding areas. The Forum works to encourage and promote
the collation of anonymised data and uses this data to produce an
annual report. The last report identified an increase in the number
of male victims reporting to the police and reporting to non-police
agencies. More work to identify the particular issues and needs behind
the figures is being explored. For example, the Forum is currently
arranging for a worker from a mens project in Cardiff to do a local
workshop and presentation. This project works with gay, bi-sexual
and heterosexual men. In conjunction with the Forum, the City Council
actively participated in the domestic violence annual campaign last
November to raise awareness that domestic violence is an issue for
men.
The
table below provides information in response to your question about
how many help and support groups we fund directly or indirectly
for (A) male and (B) female victims of domestic violence and their
children and (C) how much each one has received in the current financial
year. In the majority of cases the Councils funding
contributes to a specific element of a bigger project
| Name
of organisation |
Target
Group |
Funding
|
Part
funding/ wholly funded |
Womens
Aid
Provides
services for women and children, many of whom will be suffering
from the traumatic effects of domestic violence
|
Women
and Children |
£57,600 |
Part
funding |
Panahghar
Provides
play, educational and recreational activities, care and support
to Asian children whilst living in the Panahghar refuge, many
of whom have experienced the traumatic effects of domestic violence. |
Children |
£39,700
|
Part
funding |
| Domestic
Violence Integrated Response Project (DVIRP)
Provides
a telephone helpline for people experiencing domestic violence,
offering support and encouragement to enable people to take
back control of their lives. |
Women
Men
|
£31,000 |
Part
funding |
| Leicester
Rape Crisis Centre
Provides
a helpline, counselling support, advice and information to women
who have experienced rape and sexual assault.
Rape
Crisis also supports ‘ in kind’ a service supporting
male victims of rape however this is not funded by Leicester
City Council.
|
Women |
£44,500 |
Not
known |
| Relate
Provides
relationship counselling to predominantly, but not exclusively,
couples in a relationship. Domestic violence may be an issue
in the relationship.
|
Men
and Women |
£12,800 |
Not
known |
| Leicester
Counselling Centre
Provides
face-to-face counselling to individuals who may be having difficulty
managing different aspects of their life e.g. relationships.
Domestic Violence may be an issue to be addressed.
|
Men
and Women |
£24,100
|
Not
known |
| Quetzal
Providing
a helpline, counselling support, information and advice to adult
women survivors of early childhood sexual abuse.
|
Women |
£8,050 |
Not
known |
| Additional
Keepsafe Scheme (ASK)
The
ASK project, is a partnership between the Council, DVIRP and
the Police. The aim of the project is to increase the options
for male and female victims of domestic violence by offering
practical and emotional support that can include additional
security features for the home. This incorporates a multi-agency
risk assessment and involves staff trained in domestic violence
from all agencies |
Men
and Women |
£3,200 |
Part
funding |
In
addition the Council provides a range of services
for individuals, some of whom may be victims of domestic violence.
These services fall outside the definition of help or support groups,
but are outlined below for information:
-
emergency
accommodation is provided to anyone who is homeless, with support
needs and aged 16 and over. Often there may be additional help
and support which is available at the hostel like outreach support,
primary health care and mental health services workers.
-
in
line with national requirements, the City Council also operates
a Supporting People Programme. The key aims of this programme
are to improve housing-related support services in the City and
increase people’s ability to make informed choices about
the support they need to live independently. A directory of services
funded via the Supporting People Programme in Leicester is available
on the following website: http://www.leicester.gov.uk/supportingpeople/page.asp?pgid=5818
-
there
are a range of professional staff within the Council, such as
Housing Officers, Social Workers, Education Welfare Officers and
Teachers, who would support victims of domestic violence as part
of their general role.
I
hope the above information meets your requirements. Should you require
any further information or clarification please do not hesitate to
contact Karen Mosley, tel. (0116) 256 8229 or email Karen.Mosley@leicester.gov.uk.
Yours
sincerely
Pat
Hobbs
Service Director
Housing
Accommodation and Tenancy Support
Chair, Domestic
Violence Project Team
| 
