We are delighted to announce that we are bringing our Domestic Violence Advocate (DVA) Car service to Buckinghamshire.

During our DVA car service’s time in Hampshire, we supported over 3,000 victims/survivors in times of crisis. In Buckinghamshire, we’ll be working in partnership with the Thames Valley Police, the Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner and Buckinghamshire Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Service to bring this project into the area on selected evenings.

This partnership is just one of the many ways that Aurora unites with organisations to deepen the support available for survivors in the community. The impact has been huge – from victim engagement to police understanding, we know that our DVA Cars offer a crucial lifeline to women and girls in their time of need.

The very nature of the service is to show the victim that they aren’t alone – and to offer someone independent who genuinely believes them. This in itself can be transformative for a person and can encourage them to disclose far more than they normally would if the police were there without us. One of our earliest research reports on the effectiveness of DVA Cars found that 100% of victims agreed to speak with Aurora staff. In addition to this, 100% 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 female advocate with the officer deployed to the address.

‘We find that victims are really surprised when we turn up – they had no idea that we existed. Many say that they felt believed and taken seriously for the first time. Often, this means that we are able to empower them to engage and do a risk assessment when previously they hadn’t,’ says Charlotte Robinson, Senior Advocate for the DVA Cars™ service.

There can be a huge number of reasons why a victim may not feel as open to sharing information with a police officer – it can feel intimidating, for starters. The neutrality of DVA Car™ advocates, the lack of preconceptions and even the normal clothing that they wear creates a softer, more comforting environment. Through this environment, we can then support the police in gathering the information and evidence they need, whatever the next step.

If you would like to support us and you are able to donate, you can do so here