Today Welsh Women’s Aid have launched a new report outlining how their community response, Change that Lasts, has enabled community members and professionals to empower survivors of domestic abuse to access support and rebuild their lives. Respect has worked closely with Welsh Women’s Aid to deliver this response, partnering to deliver CLEAR, an early response to perpetrators.
The Change that Lasts response is built on the principle that a victim or survivor of abuse will likely disclose their experience to someone within their community first, before considering reaching out for specialist support. Consequently, it’s vital that people in the community, from colleagues and neighbours, to friends and faith leaders, can respond effectivelyand compassionately.
CLEAR is a complementary strand of this work, developed by Respect in partnership with Welsh Women’s Aid as an early response to peopleusing abusive behaviours in their relationships. This includes Trusted Professional training, which helps practitioners identify and refer perpetrators to services, as well as a short awareness raising course for men concerned about their behaviour towards women. The aim is to intervene with perpetrators as early as possible by raising awareness, supporting behavioural change and increasing accountability. All of this is done separately but in parallel with robust survivor support.
Jo Todd, CEO of Respect said:
"In Change that Lasts, Welsh Women’s Aid has created a trailblazing, integrated approach that’s helping transform community responses to domestic abuse. Their approach puts survivors’ needs at the centre, shifts the dial on community awareness, and empowers non-specialist professionals to respond confidently to abuse."
“We’re delighted to be working alongside Welsh Women’sAid to integrate a perpetrator response into Change That Lasts. By funding thiswork, South Wales PCC has signalled its commitment to giving perpetrators meaningful opportunities to change, as part of a wider approach that ensures all perpetrators receive an appropriate response. We look forward to working with Welsh Women’s Aid to grow our capacity, so more perpetrators can access the support they need, and survivors and children are safer.”
Read more about Change That Lasts, including the CLEAR strand, here.
