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Cllr Simon Blackburn, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Safer and Stronger Communities Board, responded to the introduction of the Domestic Abuse Bill to Parliament 

“Tackling domestic abuse is an issue that councils take very seriously and it is good to see the legal definition of it widened to support more prosecution cases and help more victims of this despicable crime.

“The new statutory duty to provide safe accommodation for victims and their children has only been placed on councils, but they cannot tackle this crime alone. Councils will need the cooperation of other public services, including the police, to work together on this. Where possible, victims of domestic abuse should be supported to remain in their own home if it is safe to do so.

“There needs to be a greater focus on prevention and early intervention measures to tackle the root causes, support more victims, and stop domestic abuse occurring in the first place. This will require funding and investment for evidence-based perpetrator programmes and for key learning and best practice from Domestic Homicide Reviews to be shared on a national level.
“However, the ability of councils to fund services for victims is limited by significant pressures on their budgets. Ahead of the Budget, we want to work with government to ensure councils receive long-term and sustainable funding to protect individuals and families from the physical and psychological harm of domestic abuse.”

Notes to editors

The LGA is supporting a campaign which calls on the Government to create a Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Strategy for England and Wales. 

Enhanced Domestic Abuse Bill introduced to Parliament