This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Strategy to eradicate domestic abuse
19/09/2003
A long-term strategy to eradicate domestic abuse was published by the Executive today.
Preventing Domestic Abuse: A National Strategy will help local authorities, police forces, health boards, and voluntary organisations to develop local strategies to drive forward prevention work.
It sets out the responsibilities of all those involved and short-term and longer-term goals to be achieved.
Deputy Minister for Communities Mary Mulligan said:
"Prevention work is one of the most important ways to influence the attitudes and behaviour of present and future generations. Getting over to people that relationships should be based on equality and respect will have a significant impact on how they respond to partners.
"We have already committed £23 million between 2000-2004 to build new refuges and develop services. This is real progress, but we must also tackle the causes and stop abuse happening in the first place. That is why we have our very powerful awareness raising campaign with the 'Dolls House' television advertisement and that is why we are launching the prevention strategy.
"We will not be complacent. We will continue to drive this work forward, improving services, challenging and changing deep rooted attitudes where needed. I want to see a Scotland based on respect for self and others, a Scotland free of domestic abuse."
The key elements of the strategy are:
- working with and challenging men who use violence. The strategy stresses the accountability of men who use violence. The perpetrator is the only person responsible for his or her violence. Working with violent men can help them change and learn to stop abusing power. The work could take the form of extending pilot projects such as voluntary referral to programmes which address violence, in addition to court mandated programmes
- strategies for the workplace. The prevention strategy stresses the importance of engaging with public and private sector employers, and suggests the provision of information packs and making training available as a way of helping tackle domestic abuse
- training strategies for professional workers, such as doctors and other health professionals, social workers, police officers and voluntary workers. This could include staff development programmes and higher level education and training, possibly to degree level training issues will be fully developed in the forthcoming national training strategy
- services for women, children and young people. For instance, support services can ensure that the voices of survivors of domestic abuse help to inform and change services and aid prevention work. It is also recognised that good practice in service provision provides a backdrop to prevention initiatives
- further public awareness-raising to identify the problem and challenge myths. This could be done through posters and billboards, TV and cinema adverts, and newspaper and magazine features
- education, mainly in schools but through community and informal education, to change attitudes and promote respect and positive values
Preventing Domestic Abuse: A National Strategy has been produced by the Domestic Abuse Prevention Working Group, set up by the National Group to Address Violence Against Women in Scotland.
All local authorities now have active multi-agency domestic abuse partnerships. The Prevention Strategy will be monitored by the National Group to Address Violence Against Women in Scotland.