DVACT-PAI have now published those standards which we commissioners and service users should expect from child-focused expert assessments.

DVACT-PAI are an established team of experts that have worked together for many years, helping to keep children safe from domestic abuse. Read more to find out about our aims, where we came from and who we are.

This article examines the strong rationale for expert services that can help to avoid the emotional and financial costs of care proceedings and child removals due to domestic abuse

Lioness success raises the profile of women in sport and domestic abuse

This article examines the impact of harmful attitudes towards women spread through the manosphere and how this can be identified with recommendations for parents, guardians, educators and professionals on addressing this with young men.

Misogynistic attitudes present a key risk to women in intimate relationships. This article examines the impact of harmful attitudes towards women, how this can be identified within society and individual relationships, with techniques for addressing this within perpetrator work.

Reports by Refuge estimate that three women a week die by suicide following domestic abuse, indicating that death by suicide has now overtak

We join other UK organisations to promote greater awareness and understanding of post-separation abuse

The importance of by and for organisations

The rise of domestic violence associated with the world cup

Gaslighting is a type of emotional abuse that has become increasingly recognised in abusive relationships.

Research indicates that only 1% of perpetrators receive an intervention in the UK to address their abusive behaviour. In this post we look a

What factors could have led to the tragic death of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and what are the risks facing children since the pandmeic.

Each year there is a reported spike in domestic violence with fears that this year will be further impacted by the pandemic

Many victims of violence fight back and abused women are no exception. In this post, we discuss the use of violent resistance by victims of domestic violence, how to distinguish between violent resistance and violence from a primary abuser and how this can raise the risk to the victim and her children. Many victims of domestic abuse do fight back The narrative most often associated with victim/survivors of domestic abuse is one of passivity. However, many women show great str

DV-ACT was saddened to hear that a social worker was attacked along with police officers while undertaking a welfare check in Haringey. In this post we discuss the importance of welfare checks for domestic abuse victims and children with key insight from our expert social workers on how to keep safe. On August 6th a social worker in Haringey London was stabbed while trying to 'defuse a situation' involving 2 young children. While we are pleased to hear that the social worker

The recent care review of children's services has highlighted the need for more supportive interventions for families. This post will give advice to social workers on how families can be supported at an early intervention stage when domestic violence and abuse is present in the family home. Supporting families living with domestic abuse The recently published "Case for Change" care review (July 2021) identified a number of priorities for improving the children’s social care s

Recent surveys indicate that children have experienced greater abuse during lockdowns. This post is designed to provide social workers with child-focused guidance for risk management and safety planning in domestic abuse cases. Protecting children post lockdown Early research into the effects of the pandemic on domestic abuse is showing that restrictions used to minimise the spread of the virus have reinforced environments that aid the behaviours that abusers use against thei

In this post, we discuss the Duluth Model's Power and Control Wheel and how it can be used in domestic abuse practice. The Power and Control Wheel The Power and Control Wheel was developed in the 1980's by the American Domestic Abuse Intervention Project and, as an early example of trauma-informed practice, used focus groups of female victims/survivors to compile a list of the types of abuse most commonly used against them. Nobody understands the reality of being abused by a

It is increasingly acknowledged that children are often trapped in the perpetrators' regimes of coercive control and suffer the same harmful effects as those living with physical abuse. This post will examine how this type of abuse affects children and the implications for child contact and safety planning. Coercive control and the effects on children Early research into the effects of the pandemic on domestic abuse is showing that restrictions used to minimise the spread of