Posted on: 4 February, 2021
South Gloucestershire Council News Release
South Gloucestershire Council, Civic Centre, High Street, Kingswood BS15 9TR
We are pleased to announce a partnership with a new service provider Cranstoun, which will help tackle serious domestic violence offenders through the national Drive programme.
South Gloucestershire Council and Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Sue Mountstevens are funding the Drive programme in South Gloucestershire, alongside The National Community Lottery Fund. Based on a proven model that has had success in other areas, Drive aims to increase victim and survivor safety by responding to perpetrators of domestic abuse and working to challenge, disrupt, and change their behaviour.
Multi-agency meetings will identify high-harm offenders and information held by partners will be shared, resources are pooled, and actions agreed. Perpetrators (of any gender) are identified for the programme and an individualised approach is developed including one-to-one behaviour change work along with working to remove the barriers to the change process and taking actions to disrupt abuse with multi-agency partners.
The programme will launch in February and will run until July 2023. The ultimate aim is to prevent repeat offending and reduce harm caused to others.
Alongside the PCC, the Council will provide links to key support services and agencies to Cranstoun who will manage cases and work with the perpetrators and an Independent Domestic Violence Advisor.
The project will cost £750k, with 60 per cent of the funding coming from local contributions and 40 per cent from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK.
Cllr Erica Williams, who chairs the South Gloucestershire Partnership Against Domestic Abuse (PADA), said: “We are pleased to announce this new provider who join our local partnership to deliver Drive in South Gloucestershire. This programme focuses on the perpetrator and has a proven track record of getting results by concentrating on the root causes of violent behaviour and preventing repeat behaviour. We need to stop asking ‘why won’t she leave’ and start asking ‘why doesn’t he stop’. Drive takes a different approach and is shown to work in reducing repeat offences and further harm.”
Charlie Mack, Chief Executive, Cranstoun, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded the contract to deliver the Drive Programme in South Gloucestershire, in partnership with South Gloucestershire Council and Avon and Somerset PCC. We already work with Drive and are looking forward to working together with our multi-agency partners to successfully mobilise the service.
“We believe everyone should have the opportunity to live healthy, safe and happy lives. By working with the perpetrators to enable positive change we can protect victims and children from experiencing abuse.”
PCC Sue Mountstevens added: “I am delighted to have commissioned Cranstoun to roll-out the Drive programme in South Gloucestershire. I am proud that my office has been able to support this programme and I believe this is another step in ensuring perpetrator interventions become part of how the UK responds to domestic abuse.
“Alongside continuing to work with victims and survivors to give them the help and support they deserve, it is time to put the responsibility back onto the offender. Drive’s programme challenges perpetrator behaviour to stop the violence and get to the root cause of the abuse. I believe by working with perpetrators we can make long-term change to victims, survivors and their families.”
Kyla Kirkpatrick, Director of Drive, said: “We are looking forward to working with Cranstoun as service delivery providers, alongside South Gloucestershire Council and Avon and Somerset PCC. We currently work with Cranstoun delivering Drive in the West Mercia area, and are pleased to be able to take this next step to expand Drive and make more victims and survivors safer by holding perpetrators to account.”
For further information about the Drive project in South Gloucestershire see the web page. www.cranstoun.org/services/domestic-abuse/drive-s-glos/
For more information on domestic violence support available in South Gloucestershire visit www.southglos.gov.uk/domesticabuse
ENDS
Notes to Editor
Drive
Drive was developed in 2015 by Respect, SafeLives and Social Finance – the Drive Partnership – to address a gap in work with high-harm perpetrators of domestic abuse. The project was developed out of a need to address the many perpetrators who were repeatedly offending with either the same or new victims.
Drive is a national project, with service providers delivering the intervention in local areas. In every site, we partner with local specialist domestic abuse organisations to design and deliver a programme tailored for the locality. This work is done in partnership with statutory agencies such as the police, public health, and children’s social care.
The Drive Partnership also works across the domestic abuse specialist sector, public sector partners and beyond to develop sustainable, national systems in England and Wales that respond effectively to all perpetrators of domestic abuse. Our vision is that one day there will be a consistent approach which sees agencies in all PCC and local authority areas across England and Wales working together to disrupt abuse and change behaviour to increase safety for victims-survivors, children and families.
The National Lottery Community Fund
We are the largest community funder in the UK – we’re proud to award money raised by National Lottery players to communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Since June 2004, we have made over 200,000 grants and awarded over £9 billion to projects that have benefited millions of people.
We are passionate about funding great ideas that matter to communities and make a difference to people’s lives. At the heart of everything we do is the belief that when people are in the lead, communities thrive. Thanks to the support of National Lottery players, our funding is open to everyone. We’re privileged to be able to work with the smallest of local groups right up to UK-wide charities, enabling people and communities to bring their ambitions to life.