Help is at hand for victims of domestic abuse
Pledge from cops after 900 suffer in five months
More than 900 people in Renfrewshire were victims of domestic abuse over five months last year.
In a report, to be presented to the Houston, Crosslee, Linwood, Riverside and Erskine Local Area Committee, members will hear that this is a decrease on the corresponding period of April to August 2016.
The committee members will also hear about Renfrewshire’s Gender Based Violence Strategy Group, an inter-agency strategic partnership responsible for developing and implementing Renfrewshire’s response to Equally Safe – Scotland’s national strategy to tackle all forms of violence against females.
The report states that there is a range of specialist services available to support women and children who are subject to gender- based violence, including Renfrewshire Women and Children First, Renfrewshire Reconnection, Renfrewshire Rising, Renfrewshire Women’s Aid, ASSIST and Barnardos.
Detective Inspector Tom Carty, of the Domestic Abuse Investigation Unit in Paisley, said: “I would like to assure anyone suffering at the hands of a domestic abuser that help and support is available.
“Any information we receive will be dealt with by a specialist team of highly- experienced officers who will decide on the most appropriate course of action.
“The safety of the victim is paramount and this will be the main priority when progressing the investigation.
“Working with our partners, we remain fully committed to targeting the perpetrators of this type of crime and we will exploit every investigative opportunity to ensure they are arrested and held to account for their actions.”
MARAC ( Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference) meetings are held on a monthly basis in a bid to protect victims at the highest risk of harm.
Since MARAC was established within Renfrewshire in November 2015, there have been 232 victims discussed ,and safety plans have been put in place to prevent further harm to them and their family.
In recent years, domestic violence media campaigns and reporting strategies have given victims of violence the confidence to report, and has provided mechanisms for third parties to also report incidences of violence.
This has led to an upwards trend in reporting of domestic violence, which corresponds to the national trend.
Renfrewshire Council worked with local and national community and volunteer groups to create a variety of events for its version of 16 Days of Action, an international annual awareness- raising campaign, the committee will also hear.
The meeting of Houston, Crosslee, Linwood, Riverside and Erskine Local Area Committee will take place on Wednesday, March 14, at 6pm in Tweedie Hall, Linwood.