Agenda item

Lynsey Kelly,Community Safety Manager, to present report

Karen Samuels, Head of Community Safety, introduced the report to the panel. The Head of Community Safety introduced Kathy Cole-Evans, Strategy Co-ordinator/Manager Domestic Violence Forum, to the panel to contribute to the discussion.

The Head of Community Safety introduced the report to the panel and outlined the aims of the strategy, which builds on the progress of the previous strategy which ended in 2019.  The Head of Community Safety commented on work done to align services to reduce the risk of violence against girls and women.

The Head of Community Safety while highlighting the success of the previous strategy added there was acceptance that there was still more work to be done. The Head of Community Safety commented that the strategy had been updated to include stalking and harassment as a new area focus.

The Head of Community Safety commented on the work of the Wolverhampton Domestic Violence Forum (WDVF) which had led to the inclusion of stalking and harassment as part of the refresh of the strategy. The Head of Community Safety commented that while 83% of reported victims are women, there is a recognition that local and nationally, that there are both female and male victims and perpetrators. This aspect is reflected in the refreshed strategy. The Head of Community Safety outlined the six themes covered by the strategy.

The members of the Safer Wolverhampton Partnership will be responsible for the governance and delivery of the strategy. The Strategy Co-ordinator advised that the WDVF had representatives from all the key organisations and the necessary building blocks are in place to respond to the needs of victims. The Strategy Co-ordinator commented on the range of training given to 3,500 frontline staff and community groups to both raise awareness of the issues and to recognise the signs of people at risk, so that cases can be referred to the appropriate agency.  The Strategy Co-ordinator welcomed suggestions from the panel about local groups that could be visited to talk about the issue of violence against girls and women. The closing date for the public consultation is 12 March 2019 and panel members were encouraged to contribute.

The Head of Community Safety gave a brief summary of the responses received and the key themes. The issue of ‘breast ironing’ was highlighted as an emerging concern, there was no evidence of any local cases.

The panel were invited to comment on the strategy. The panel suggested that the strategy should be revised to include a reference to the impact and use of social media which contribute to issues such as harassment and stalking. The Head of Community Safety agreed to include a reference to social media in the strategy. The panel queried the work done to raise awareness of the issue of FGM among different communities and also to involve representatives of the LGBT community in the consultation.

The Head of Community panel reassured the panel that representatives of LGBT community while not listed in the draft have been consulted about the strategy and would welcome any suggestions of groups that should be contacted. The Strategy Co-ordinator commented on the work being done with hospitals and local GPs to offer training and advice on how to raise the issue and their responsibilities to report safeguarding concerns.

In addition, work is being done with Refugee Migrant Centre (RMC). The work is being funded by a grant from NHS England and is intended to develop community champions. The community champions would include professionals and also members of the community who would be given safeguarding training and awareness to highlight the fact that the practice is illegal, and the long-term damage caused. The Head of Community advised the panel that 6 February 2019 is International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation and the work done to promote awareness as part of multi-agency work with the police and others. The Head of Community commented on the domestic violence training given to the police to help them deal sensitively with victims. This work is supported by specialist training given to police officers with responsibility for this area of work.

The Strategy Coordinator advised that a revised domestic violence strategy will be published by West Midlands Police. The panel discussed the impact on the work of organisations such as Haven of migrants and their dependent families people who due to their immigration status have no recourse to public funds and therefore not entitled to certain welfare benefits,

The Strategy Coordinator invited panel members to consider becoming community champions to support people and give advice on domestic violence and proposed making the training mandatory for all employees. The Strategy Coordinator commented on local people recruited as part of community champions initiative. The panel were encouraged to become community champions and if interested to contact the Strategy Coordinator for further details.

The panel discussed the issue of vulnerable groups and the level of representatives from groups such as LGBT Alliance and the extent to which they have been encouraged to be involved in the consultation. The Head of Community Safety confirmed that since the report was published contact has been made with representatives of LGBT Alliance and would welcome any suggestions of other groups that the panel think would be willing to get involved in the consultation.

The panel discussed the opportunities to work with representative of local faith communities to raise awareness of the campaign. The panel agreed to receive information about the work of the community safety team.

The panel welcomed the report and the progress made.

Resolved:

1.    The panel comments of the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy 2019 -2020 to considered as part of the public consultation.

2.    Panel members interested in becoming a community champion to contact the Head of Community Safety.