Gateshead Domestic Abuse Strategy 2025-28
The four 'pillars' of the strategy
The structure of this strategy follows the national Tackling VAWG Strategy and the Northumbria PCC's VAWG Strategy, based on four strategic aims:
- Prioritising prevention
- Supporting victims and survivors
- Tackling perpetrators
- Creating a stronger system
System-wide activity for each priority is detailed in the sections below.
Prioritising prevention
We will work together to prevent domestic abuse from happening in the first place.
- prevention can be considered from the perspective of primary, secondary and tertiary interventions:
- primary prevention is about preventing abuse from happening in the first place
- secondary prevention is about intervening as early as possible at the first signs of abuse, or when abuse is first reported
- tertiary prevention, sometimes described as 'stopping bad situations getting worse', is strongly connected to supporting victims/survivors and tackling perpetrators.
Our key strategic aims:
- all children and young people in Gateshead understand healthy relationships and are safe from the harm caused by domestic abuse, and unhealthy relationships and behaviours
- all adults in Gateshead understand and recognise domestic abuse (in all its forms) and its impact on individuals, families and communities
- all professionals working with children and young people in Gateshead can recognise domestic abuse, and unhealthy relationships, and behaviours and respond appropriately and effectively to prevent further harm
- all professionals working with adults in Gateshead can recognise domestic abuse and respond appropriately and effectively to prevent further harm
Supporting victims and survivors
We will improve our response to all victims and survivors of domestic abuse and their access to support across the borough.
Providing effective support for victim/survivors of domestic abuse can reduce repeat victimisation, and therefore contributes to tertiary prevention.
Our key strategic aims:
- any child or young person in Gateshead experiencing harm caused by domestic abuse, unhealthy relationships and behaviours, have access to specialist support tailored to their needs
- any adult in Gateshead experiencing domestic abuse has access to specialist support tailored to their needs
- any adult, child or young person in Gateshead experiencing domestic abuse can access the right support, within refuges and other types of domestic abuse safe accommodation, when they need it
- all professionals working with victim/survivors (adults and children) and perpetrators of domestic abuse should have access to robust case management systems and information sharing protocols, to support risk identification and safeguard individuals from harm
Tackling perpetrators
We will hold perpetrators of domestic abuse to account for their behaviour and intervene at the earliest opportunity.
Providing effective interventions for perpetrators reduces repeat victimisation, and therefore contribute to secondary and tertiary prevention.
Our key strategic aims:
- all professionals working with adults in Gateshead can spot signs of abusive behaviour and recognise opportunities for early intervention to prevent further harm
- all professionals working with children and young people in Gateshead can spot signs of unhealthy behaviour and recognise opportunities for early intervention to prevent further harm
- all perpetrators of domestic abuse, and children and young people displaying unhealthy behaviours, should have access to specialist behaviour change support tailored to their needs
- all partners should understand, use and strengthen their legal frameworks (where available) to ensure perpetrators of domestic abuse are held to account for their actions and to reduce reoffending
Creating a stronger system
We will embed a whole system approach to reduce domestic abuse in Gateshead.
The main elements of creating a stronger system relate to governance.
The DAPB is accountable to Gateshead Community Safety Board and has strong connections to the Safeguarding Children Partnership, the Safeguarding Adults Board, the Health and Wellbeing Board and the Strategic Housing Board.
The DAPB is supported by working groups focused on support for adult victims/survivors, preventing harm to children and young people, tackling perpetrators, performance and data, and domestic abuse and housing.
Our key strategic aims:
- all partners to ensure domestic abuse is a corporate priority, to support the delivery of the Gateshead Domestic Abuse Strategy and Action Plan
- all partners should understand the domestic abuse prevalence and need within their own agency/service and across the Partnership, and be able to respond effectively to emerging trends and the needs of the Gateshead population
- all professionals working with victim/survivors (adults and children) and perpetrators of domestic abuse should have access to robust case management systems to support data collection and monitoring on domestic abuse prevalence, need and outcomes across the Partnership
- all partners should critically reflect on their own service delivery model for victim/survivors (adults and children) and perpetrators of domestic abuse, and that of the Partnership, benchmarking against local, regional and national best practice
- all partners to embed learning and action recommendations from Domestic Abuse Related Death Reviews, and appropriately challenge and hold other agencies/services to account where appropriate
- all partners to engage with local communities to raise awareness of domestic abuse, promote specialist services and to listen to the voice of those with lived experience, to ensure we are meeting the needs of the Gateshead population