Forum Partnership
Members
The North Somerset Domestic Abuse Forum is a multi agency partnership set up to tackle domestic violence in the county. Members are:
- Avon and Somerset Police,
- The Gemini Project,
- The Mankind Initiative,
- North Somerset Against Domestic Abuse (NADA),
- North Somerset Community Safety Drug Action Team,
- North Somerset Council,
- North Somerset Primary Care Trust,
- Weston Area Health Trust
- Victim Support
- Wards solicitors
- Weston Area Health Trust
- The Women’s Project.
To contact the Forum please fill out the form on the right of this page.
Our Vision:
A society which recognises that all Domestic Abuse is socially and legally unacceptable.
Our Mission:
The eradication of Domestic Abuse through the co-ordination both of services which support those experiencing Domestic Abuse and those which challenge the offending behaviour of abusers.
Core Values:
The Forum believes that:
- All forms of Domestic Abuse are unacceptable in our society and that any violence is unlawful regardless of the relationship between the perpetrator and victim.
- All individuals have the right to live their lives free of the fear and experience of abuse
- There are many reasons why people stay in abusive relationships, which may include fear, love, financial dependency, isolation, religion, children, lack of alternative accommodation. The abused may want the abuse to stop but the relationship to continue and this wish must be respected.
- All children who live with Domestic Abuse suffer adverse effects and their needs will be looked at within the Child Protection Arena. In all circumstances the safety of the child will be paramount and will over-ride all other considerations
- The role and expertise of voluntary sector organisations working within this field must be fully recognised.
- Mutual respect, trust and professionalism are essential to the collaborative work of the forum.
In order to empower people to live their lives free from abuse the Forum makes the following commitments:
- Its activities will be informed by the experiences of survivors of Domestic Abuse
- It will promote and co-ordinate services for both survivors and perpetrators of Domestic Abuse
- It will work towards the development of common policy and best practice across voluntary and statutory agencies
- It will work to ensure that all services for people who have been abused will be non-judgemental and aimed at maximising their choices.
- In order to enable open and critical discussion the views and information expressed at forum meetings will only be shared outside the forum with the agreement of the members concerned.
- It will ensure that there are equal opportunities for, and treatment of, all service users and providers regardless of individual characteristics including gender, race, colour, ethnic or national origin, religion, disability, age, appearance, marital status or sexuality. The Forum will seek to actively assist disadvantaged groups and socially excluded individuals to participate in its work and benefit from services
- When there are conflicts of interest or opinions the forum will seek expertise from relevant organisations in order to clarify the issues.
Objectives
The Forum’s mission will be achieved through a co-ordinated work programme which will be set out in the North Somerset Domestic Abuse Strategy to be produced in 2006. The Strategy will be informed by a mapping exercise to be carried out in early 2006 by Barnado’s, which, in turn, will be informed by consultation with services users, forum members and others in the North Somerset community. It will build upon good practice in both North Somerset and other areas and may include:
Identifying services and maximising choices
- Through research into good practice and ensuring that there is a clear understanding of the scope and need for services in the county
- Ensuring that information about services is disseminated as widely as possible to agencies and individuals
Education and Training
- Working to ensure that young people have a clear understanding of what is acceptable behaviour within a relationship
- Ensuring that professionals understand the issues behind Domestic Abuse so that it is given strategic priority and that agencies respond in the most appropriate and helpful way to those reporting it
Lobbying and campaigning
- Raising public awareness of the issues behind Domestic Abuse and its prevalence
- Seeking to get Domestic Abuse on the strategic agenda.
Funding and finances
- Identifying and seeking funding sources for services
Networking and co-ordination
- Promoting interagency co-operation through regular meetings, contact and joint working
Services for perpetrators
- Researching the effectiveness and availability of services which address abusive behaviour
- Working towards the provision of affordable, available services which promote positive change
Links with other strategies
- Seeking to influence strategic plans to ensure that the needs of those experiencing Domestic Abuse are understood and addressed and that adequate resources are made available to services
