DVIP has close links with our local domestic violence forum in Hammersmith and Fulham. As part of this we have been involved in a multi-agency initiative which has set up a pilot inter-agency project called Standing Together Against Domestic Violence.
The project began working in November 1998 and is now half way through its pilot period. It is a far-reaching project which involves a wide range of statutory and voluntary sector projects who come into contact with domestic violence cases in their everyday work, including:
The Advocacy Project
Hammersmith Women's Aid
Hammersmith & Fulham Community Law Centre
Hammersmith & Fulham Police
Inner London Probation Service
Hammersmith & Fulham Community Safety Unit
Social Services
The Crown Prosecution Service
The Magistrate Courts
All of the above agencies have agreed to work together in order to increase the safety of victims of domestic violence and to hold perpetrators accountable for their abuse. The project has agreed protocols which all agencies work to which are designed to increase the numbers of successful prosecutions for domestic violence related crimes, to ensure that all criminal justice agencies vigorously pursue all cases and to provide increased levels of support and protection to women and children experiencing abuse.
