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Review highlights the male experience of domestic abuse services

A Domestic Abuse Related Death Review*(DARDR) into the death of Val (pseudonym) has today been published by the Norfolk Community Safety Partnership (NCSP) to enable lessons to be learned and shared as widely and thoroughly as possible to reduce the risk of such tragedies happening in the future.

Val was 27 when he took his own life in March 2023. Due to previous incidents and recordings of domestic abuse involving Val and his partner, the partnership felt there would be valuable learning from undertaking this review.

The learning coming from the review highlighted that:

  • agencies need to ensure staff can recognise and respond appropriately to domestic abuse in male victims;
  • there are opportunities to strengthen safety planning for those who self-harm or are having suicidal thoughts or ideation; 
  • despite all organisations being aware of the importance of “Voice of the Child”, in practical terms the children are not always spoken to, and their voices are not heard; and
  • the sharing of information across borders and between agencies faces many barriers that can cause unnecessary delays and an escalation of the situation.

The review recommendations responded to these learning points through reviewing and updating domestic abuse policy and training, particularly around recognising and responding to the signs of domestic abuse in male victims; improving safety plans for patients with suicidal thoughts or ideation and responding to risk factors such as co-occurring mental health and alcohol/drug use conditions. The partnership developed an action plan to deliver on all the recommendations detailed in the report and these will continue to be progressed and reviewed by the partnership.

Mark Stokes, Chair of the Norfolk Community Safety Partnership said: “The Review Panel and the members of the Norfolk Community Safety Partnership would like to offer their sincere condolences to Val’s family and friends. 

I would like to take the opportunity to thank the involvement of Val’s family. The voice of Val’s family was integral to this review, to help us as agencies to make long lasting and impactful change. Our DARDR author was able to establish a full picture of a much-loved son, brother and father and we are very grateful for their willingness to do this at such a terrible time.

Val’s story demonstrates the complex yet clear relationship between domestic abuse and mental health that requires a multi-agency holistic approach.”

Mark Brooks, Chair, ManKind Initiative, said: “It is vitally important there is far more recognition of the fact that men can be, and, are victims of domestic abuse. This would lead to friends, family and professionals in public bodies being better able to spot the signs, encourage men to reach out for support and asking the right questions at the right time. As we see in this tragic situation highlighted in this review, it can make all the difference between life and death.”

> The full DARDR into the death of Val can be found here

*A Domestic Abuse Related Death Review (DARDR), formerly known as a Domestic Homicide Review, is a locally conducted, multi-agency review of the circumstances in which the death of a person aged 16 or over has, or appears to have, resulted from violence, abuse or neglect by a relative, partner or member of the same household. DARDRs were established on a statutory basis by the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004.

A DARDR panel consists of key members of staff from statutory, non-statutory, third sector and charitable agencies who provide support for victims of domestic abuse. Working together in this way will ensure the voice of the victim is addressed through the lessons learnt and recommendations of this DARDR.

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