Agenda item

Report of the Cabinet Member for Communities and Culture

Staffordshire County Council, Stoke-on-Trent City Council, and the Staffordshire Commissioner’s Office (SCO) currently jointly commission Domestic Abuse (DA) services across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, with the SCO acting as lead commissioner. Members heard that the current Service Contract, which had commenced in October 2018, had seen the provision of Domestic Abuse Services for Victims awarded to Victim Support and the Service Contract for Perpetrators of Domestic Abuse to the Reducing Reoffending Partnership. Both services had been provided under the brand name of ‘New Era’ and had included provision for victims, perpetrators, children, and young people. The current contract ends on 30 September 2023. To allow sufficient time for the procurement process, work was underway on the service recommissioning.

Domestic Abuse is a key priority highlighted within every Community Safety Strategic Assessment across all Staffordshire Districts and Boroughs and the joint commissioning of the service had enabled a consistent approach for Domestic Abuse services across the whole of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent. The Scrutiny Committee were informed that demand for Domestic Abuse services remained high, with referrals to the victim service having increased by approximately 30% on pre-covid figures.

The committee received figures for the number of referrals made into the current contracted services to date. They noted that the overarching governance for the contract was provided by the Domestic Abuse Commissioning and Delivery Board (DACDB) which was jointly chaired by Stoke-on-Trent City Council and Staffordshire County Council representatives. Domestic Abuse, including the commissioned service contract performance, was also considered at the Safer and Stronger Communities Strategy Group, chaired by the County Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities & Culture and it was intended that these arrangements would continue with the new Contract.

The Committee scrutinised the draft recommendations to Cabinet within the Domestic Abuse Recommissioning report. They asked that consideration be given to how services would ensure they reached all in need, including those in more rural areas. They also queried why the level of support for the new contract mirrored that from 5 years earlier when demand had increased by 30%, which would see a decrease in real term funding. Members were particularly concerned that this appeared incongruous with the priority status currently given to Domestic Abuse in Staffordshire and asked whether funding levels were mirrored in other authorities. The Committee also noted the disparity in funding allocation between the victim and the perpetrator service, being concerned that not all perpetrators would benefit from services as a result and having concern that opportunities for prevention work may be missed.

The Committee was informed that whilst there had been an increase in demand, the service methods used had also changed post covid, allowing more group work again, which was more cost effective. No request had been made for an increase in core funding, however funding from other areas was also used for targeted services.  Officers agreed to look at comparisons in service funding from other authorities. Members noted that participation in offender services was voluntary, with not all offenders choosing to participate.

The Committee requested a breakdown of how the Domestic Abuse SCO funding contribution had been allocated across Staffordshire in comparison with the level of SCO funding allocated across Stoke-on-Trent.

Resolved: That:

a)   the O&S Committee’s comments and concerns be shared with Cabinet to help inform their consideration of the proposed contract renewal; and

b)   a breakdown of how the SCO Domestic Abuse funding contribution had been used between Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent be forwarded to the Committee.