Aurora New Dawn DVA Cars – Hampshire

Our Aurora New Dawn DVA Cars run every Friday and Saturday night across three areas of Hampshire, the Eastern area (covering Portsmouth, Havant, Waterlooville, and Fareham & Gosport), Southampton and Basingstoke (covering Basingstoke and Andover).

We have also ran other pilots across the wider Hampshire area in response to need and have previously run the service on the Isle of Wight.

The premise is simple and based on research^[1] there is a ‘window of opportunity’ when people seek help, and if you offer support at that point, they are more likely to engage with support services and the criminal justice system. This crisis-response service, therefore, engages people quickly, improving their safety and reducing the likelihood of future incidents.

DVA Car Outcomes

This is a partnership project where our staff work alongside the police and attend an incident of domestic abuse to offer independent support to victims and survivors. This is our second round of Big Lottery funding (2018-2021). Prior to this funding, we received three years Big Lottery funding (2015-2018) to deliver the service in the Eastern area only. The project was a success and the Community Fund (Big Lottery) awarded us a further three years funding to expand it across Hampshire. Before the Lottery-funded service we ran a series of pilot projects to ensure we achieved the correct delivery and the best times to run the service.

Through working in partnership with Hampshire Constabulary, Aurora is able to offer specialist, independent support at the time it is needed most, with the project set to support up to 4680 survivors over the next three years.

In 2018 we commissioned an independent report:

“The DVA Cars™ provides an important and innovative service to victims of domestic violence, abuse, stalking, and coercive control. It is a unique and robust approach that has a proven track record and longevity.”

“Aurora and their advocates provide a high level of expertise and knowledge in the areas of DVA, stalking, coercive control, and understanding risk within these complex areas of offending. This supports both victims of DVA and the policing of DVA. In doing so they able to increase the knowledge and understanding of the police that enhances best practice in policing DVA within Hampshire.”

From our 2014 independent report:

“100% of victims agreed to speak with the volunteers. In addition to this, 100% of victims agreed to take information about support services with 50% of these still being engaged with services over a month later. The fact that 50% of the victims had never engaged with services before evidenced the benefit of having an independent, trained specialist with the officer deploying to the address together.”

Victims Voice

We actively seek to obtain feedback from victims and survivors as this is very important to us. Feedback ensures that the service is running in a way that best supports and enables the people we have contact with:

“Was really positive – been dealing with perp abuse for 10 years. First time someone independent came along. If that had happened at the start, would have been likely to take up support.”

“Made me think differently, more positive. Not as intimidating as the police, just listened to me. Gave the support I needed at the time. Didn’t feel that many people listened to me, was good to talk to someone on the outside.”

“Good. I was not expecting them to be there. I just phoned the police to report some abusive text messages and the police came and also bought PSO alarms and then aurora came. It was nice to people to listen to me after six years of this someone was finally listening to me.”

Feedback from Police

Partnership working is an essential part of the DVA Cars service and whilst the service and the advocates are independent, the service could not run with the support from Hampshire Constabulary.

Police feedback is overwhelmingly positive about the service and co-training for both the Aurora staff and the police has been a welcome addition to the partnership:

“Thank you for your support and the ongoing work of your team which is making a real difference, not only to our victims but also increasing the knowledge and skills of our teams.” (PS)

“They were able to outline future processes/support far better than I was able to which gave a better immediate care.” (PC)

“Police can be focused on evidence gathering and procedure, the advocate offers additional support and guidance. The uniform can be a barrier to some people.” (PC)

DVA Cars in Hampshire

DVA Car Case Studies

We asked our DVA car Advocates to tell us about some of their experiences:

Case study one

Some details changed to ensure confidentiality.

I [advocate] came into work on Tuesday morning, and read an email from the R&P officers who attended an incident in the early hours of the morning. The victim (Susie) was 18, and her boyfriend had killed one of her rabbits in front of her, following an argument they’d had over a broken mobile phone. She had then telephoned her sister in Essex, who then called the police.

Susie had been in a relationship with Peter for 5 years, and during this time she had slowly become isolated from her friends and family. They regularly shoplifted to get food to eat. Within a year, she had lost so much weight, she had dropped from a dress size 16 to a size 6. They lived with his mother, who frequently soiled herself, and which Emma was then made to clear up. Both Peter and his mother had mental health and substance abuse problems.

Peter had been arrested and his mother was abroad on holiday, so we knew we had a small window of opportunity to visit Susie. Myself and police safeguarding went to visit Susie.

I phoned the National Refuge Helpline, to look at the availability of refuges in Essex – as this is where her sister lives.

A refuge space was found but unfortunately, Susie wasn’t ready to leave. The refuge kindly said they would call her again tomorrow.

Peter was bailed to not return to the address, and NPT were tasked to do urgent safeguarding follow up the next day.

The next day I telephoned Susie and confirmed that the local NPT had been to visit her. She was ready to leave! Susie’s biggest priorities were getting food for the surviving rabbit, and some clothes.

I popped into Asda to get some provisions for Susie and her rabbit, which I was able to take to her prior to her leaving. Susie was delighted. She appeared much more relaxed, and chatted easily to myself and the PCSO. She planned to visit social services for housing and benefits to get back on track. She really could see a way forward, and that she had a choice to live without fear from violence or abuse. (DVA Car™ Advocate)

Case Study two

“I attended a property with a police officer following a 999 call from a woman trapped in her bathroom, with her partner threatening and shouting outside the bathroom.

When we got there, the partner had left, and the victim (Jane) was in her lounge very upset.

I was with both a male and a female officer, and they had their body-worn cameras on the whole time.

Jane was quite open and honest about her relationship with the alleged perpetrator (AP), and had insight into how wrong his behaviour was, but did not feel strong enough to leave or change.

Jane has a teenage son, and had not previously been in any DVA relationship. She is in her mid-fifties. Jane had been in a relationship with the AP for 3 years.

She kept referring to him as “vile” and told us that she had begun drinking heavily to cope with his emotional abuse, shouting, intimidation, and the derogatory language he used in reference to her. Along with physical threats of violence, and constant phone calls, and messages. She had also lost her job, as he came into the shop where she worked and smashed up the whole shop. He also forced her to steal money out of the till.

Whilst we were with her, she received numerous voicemail messages and texts from him, which we all ignored as we were speaking to her. Her dog was relaxed and happy by her side.

We then asked to listen to these messages, and she played them. The dog instantly stood up and barked when he heard the AP’s voice through the phone. He kept barking and growling aggressively whilst we played a few of the messages.

The male officer had this all on his body-worn. He said “I have never seen a dog react like that”

The AP was arrested, and before knocking on his door, he was heard to be shouting and using foul language – and phone records show it was to her.

This went to court, and he was charged with assault by beating, criminal damage to property, and persistently making use of public communications to cause annoyance, inconvenience, or anxiety. Plus a restraining order valid until May 2020.

The officer I was crewed with felt they would not have got all the information from Jane had I not been there” (DVA Car™ Advocate)

Feedback from a DVA Car™ advocate:

“I think the early engagement stuff is really important, that’s the most important part as well as, for the survivors, having someone there when they’re at their most vulnerable that isn’t the police. Because we’re completely, and I always say that, we’re independent from the police so we’re there as their voice and whatever they need or want that’s our role really, we don’t have an agenda, our agenda is them. So, I think it’s about, firstly, obviously that crisis response and early engagement but I think about having someone there for them that is independent that they sometimes feel freer to talk to because we’re not the police, and they feel safer to be able to disclose. And I think generally we do get more from people than the police will get from them”. (Advocate)

Shonagh Dillon, Chief Executive of Aurora New Dawn, says: “Our vision is to end discrimination against women through offering protection, safety and support. We know that two women are murdered by a current or former partner every week in England and Wales, and that on average a victim will have been abused around 35 times before they call the police. This service gives us a chance to reach out and offer face to face support at times when domestic abuse is most likely to occur, on Friday and Saturday nights. We are very excited about working in partnership with Hampshire Constabulary on this project and incredibly thankful to the Big Lottery Fund for this grant to enable us to support so many survivors.”

^[1] Research findings on ‘the window of opportunity’ are numerous but include: Evaluation of Domestic Violence Matters; Dr. Liz Kelly et all 2011 and Home Office Research Study 290 Marianne Hester and Nicole Westmarland, University of Sunderland 2005.

SDAC blog post:

Our Specialist Domestic Abuse Court Independent Domestic Violence Advocate (SDAC IDVA for short!) works with victims and survivors of domestic abuse whose cases are going through the criminal justice system.

Court cases can take time, and the criminal justice process can be a complex and often incredibly frightening experience for victims of domestic abuse in particular. We know that nationally the conviction rate for domestic abuse cases is around 13%. Many victims and survivors feel unable to continue with the process: as a result of fear, risk, pressure, or a lack of support. Often these fears can be exacerbated by long wait times between charge and trial. As such the attrition rate in domestic abuse cases – the rate at which witnesses drop out of the criminal justice system – is very high.

Portsmouth has what is known as a Specialist Domestic Abuse Court or SDAC. These courts – sometimes called Specialist Domestic Violence Courts (or SDVCs) – exist in various areas across the country to respond to the specific needs of victims of abuse and support them in being able to give their evidence. Rather than being separate buildings, the term SDAC refers to a set of processes and facilities that a court has in place to ensure domestic abuse cases are dealt with quickly and efficiently, and that victims have access to information and support at every stage of the process.

A key component of any SDAC court is the availability of independent, specialist support for the victim, and this is where our Specialist Court Advocate comes in, offering specialist, one-to-one support to anyone whose case is going through court. All the usual elements of an IDVA service are provided, including risk assessment, safety planning, advocacy/liaison with other agencies and emotional support, but with the added component of direct support for the duration of the court case. This will vary depending on the needs of the client but might involve:

• Ensuring the client is kept up to date with the status of the case
• Ensuring that their safety during the hearing (both on entrance/exit and in the courtroom) is prioritised
• Liaising with the police/CPS to make sure that restraining orders are both applied for where required, and robust and detailed enough to effectively protect the victim going forward
• Remaining in court until the conclusion of the case (to ensure the client is updated on the outcome as quickly as possible)
• Attending sentencing on the client’s behalf
• Working with SDAC court partners to ensure the process is kept under continuous review, and to feedback about both good practice or areas for improvement.

 

The aim of the SDAC court, and the specialist advocate, is to ensure that victims and witnesses are kept central to the process at all times. By offering independent support throughout, the hope is that victims feel supported, safeguarded, and therefore more able to continue their involvement with the court case. The service’s key aim is to contribute to the reduction of the high attrition rate for domestic abuse cases in the city.

Outcomes:

In our most recent analysis of the service, none of the clients who engaged with the SDAC IDVA have withdrawn from the CJS process. Whilst some cases have been discontinued for other reasons, the attrition rates for clients working with the SDAC IDVA remain low. In asking clients for their feedback on the service, 100% of the clients who have completed evaluation forms said that they felt supported at court as a result of working with the SDAC IDVA. 100% reported that they felt their emotional wellbeing had improved as a result of working with the SDAC IDVA, and 80% reported that they felt safer as a direct result of engaging with the service.

Interestingly, we saw early guilty pleas in 71% of the cases involved with the SDAC IDVA in the last reporting quarter. In an early guilty plea, the perpetrator pleads guilty before the trial rather than at the trial itself, which is of particular benefit because it negates the need for victims to attend court and give their evidence. Sometimes defendants will avoid making an early guilty plea in an attempt to ‘wait it out’ hoping that the victim will not attend court. An increase in early guilty pleas may point to a growing recognition, amongst defendants and their representatives, that victims are feeling increasingly confident in continuing with the criminal justice process. We continue to work with our partner agencies, including the police, CPS, witness service, and court staff, to track the impact of the Specialist court, and of the Independent advocate, going forward.

The following is an example, from our Specialist Court Advocate, of the work they undertook at court with a client recently:

Case study from SDAC IDVA:

I meet my client away from the court building, as she has never been to court before, she is understandably very nervous. We are there for a trial as my client’s perpetrator pleaded ‘not guilty’ to an assault against her. We head towards the courts together, where the court staff sign us in as we enter and we are collected by a member of the witness service. We are escorted to a secure area and I reassure my client that we are in a safe space, away from the perpetrator and the public areas of the court. The witness service volunteer explains the court procedure to my client and I reassure my client that a screen is in place for when they give their evidence as they do not want to be seen by him. My client and I have a coffee whilst waiting. The prosecutor then comes and has a chat with my client about what to expect and hands them their statement to read.

I leave my client to read her statement and offer to clarify anything if they find it difficult to read. I encourage my client to read their statement again, or as many times as they like, to make sure they aware of what is written. I then take instructions from my client as to whether or not they would like me to leave with them, once they have given their evidence, or if they would like me to remain in the court to observe the rest of the trial. My client opts for me to stay in the court room to observe the rest of the trial. I reassure my client that a witness service volunteer will escort them into the courtroom, will sit with them behind the screen when they are giving their evidence and will escort them safely out of the building once they have given their evidence.

My client is called to the courtroom to give her evidence. The courtroom is emptied whilst my client is taken in and placed behind the screen. I go into the courtroom and sit in the public gallery at the back. The perpetrator is then brought in and my client gives her evidence. She is then free to go. The courtroom is emptied again whilst my client is taken out of the courtroom, by which time I say goodbye and agree to call them after the trial has ended. The Perpetrator then gives his evidence. The evidence for the prosecution’s case is strong enough to prove, beyond reasonable doubt, that the perpetrator assaulted my client and the magistrates decide that perpetrator is ‘guilty’. The sentencing hearing is adjourned for 3 weeks, pending a pre-sentence report from Probation and bail conditions remain in place until then. Perpetrator is free to leave and, for the purpose of safety and confidentiality, I leave making sure that it is either before or after the perpetrator has left.

Once out of the court I call my client immediately and relay the outcome. I provide emotional support as my client reflects on their thoughts and feelings. This has been a very emotional time for her. I remind her that she has been incredibly brave in speaking out and we talk through the importance of her taking things easy for the rest of the day. I remind her to call me if she wants to talk further or has any questions. In closing I reassure my client that a restraining order has been applied for, but that bail conditions will remain in place until the sentencing hearing. We agree that I will attend the sentencing hearing without her (she is not required to attend), and that I will update her of the outcome as soon as I have it.

 *This project is funded by the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and the IOW*