April 2, 2008: More Specialist Domestic Violence Court Systems

The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the victims of domestic violence with the announcement of over 30 new specialist domestic violence court systems across England and Wales. This will bring the total number of such systems to 98.

Tackling domestic violence has been one of the government's priorities since 1997. Specialist domestic violence court systems are a fundamental part of efforts to improve the support and care provided for victims of domestic violence.

A multi-agency approach is central to their success: police, prosecutors court staff, the probation service and specialist support services work together to identify, track and risk assess domestic violence cases, support victims and share information so that more offenders are brought to justice. Amongst the pioneering features are:

• specially trained magistrates in dealing with domestic violence
• separate entrances, exits and waiting areas so that victims don't come into contact with their attackers
• cases clustered on a particular day or fast-tracked through the system, limiting the likelihood of further incidents
• tailored support and advice from Independent Domestic Violence Advisors

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith commented:

'Improving the support available to the courageous victims of these devastating crimes is crucial in encouraging people to come forward. The success and expansion of the Specialist Domestic Violence Courts system will ensure that we continue to bring more perpetrators to justice and improve the support and safety of victims.'

The Attorney General, Baroness Scotland QC said:

'The specialist domestic violence courts are a fundamental part of our effort to improve the support and care we provide for victims of domestic violence. We are committed to providing a first class prosecution service.

'By providing specialist training for prosecutors and better support systems for victims we are seeing a tangible difference in performance. In the last four years we have seen marked success - and we need to keep aiming higher.

'Perpetrators must be brought to justice, and when they are our specialist prosecutors and support services will be there to assist victims every step of the way.'

In a review of the first 23 specialist domestic violence court systems systems published earlier this year, it is clear that they have contributed to improvements in both justice and safety for domestic violence victims. Ten of those achieved a successful prosecution rate of over 70%, with one reaching over 80% and the remaining 12 achieving an average rate of 66%.

Other key findings of the Review, conducted jointly by the Crown Prosecution Service, the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice, which analysed the data and performance of the 23 specialist domestic violence court systems in England and Wales from October 2006 until March 2007 are:

• An improvement in the responses of individual agencies: in relation to the police, a high level of domestic violence crimes being arrested (an average of over 80%);
• Just under 6,000 victim referrals were made to Independent Domestic Violence Advisers - an average of 269 referrals per IDVA service;
• Around three-quarters (74%) of clients involved in the court process were supported by Independent Domestic Violence Advisers at court