Domestic Abuse charity FearLess recommissioned by Wiltshire Council
The partnership has supported more than 2,000 people in the last year
Wiltshire-based charity FearLess are extending their 25-year partnership with the Council to provide domestic abuse support services.
The new service will include support for survivors and also for perpetrators, as research suggested 80% of people who behave in a harmful way suffered abuse when they were children.
Wiltshire Council Cabinet Member for Public Health, Ian Blair-Pilling, said: “For many years, 25 years plus and it's been a very successful relationship and they're able to bring their expertise and ability to innovate to meet our needs. And so, this is has been a success and we want it to continue to be and to develop.”
Director of Service at FearLess, Emily Denne, said: “FearLess is incredibly proud of our Wiltshire Service, which recently achieved its Leading Lights accreditation, evidencing the exceptional service it delivers to victims and survivors of Domestic Abuse.
"We are thrilled to continue running this phenomenal service and look forward to developing and expanding it over the coming years”
Over the last year, the partnership between the Council and FearLess has supported 2000 people, with 500 of them being children.
As well as supporting survivors, 100 perpetrators were helped in that same period, with Mr Blair-Pilling saying: “It’s important to help those who have been perpetrators, because very often they are victims themselves in the past and we have to break that cycle.”
Research suggested that as many as 80% of offenders were abused in their childhood.
Mr Blair-Pilling added that the new approach allowed the Council and FearLess to take a broader view of how they help people.
He said: “Right at the beginning, there's an assessment of what the needs are and there will be needs for the victims, there will be needs for the perpetrators and they will vary.
“No two families, no two sets of circumstances are identical.”
The service will provide various methods of supporting people, which will be decided after a dialogue which will formulate the best approach for the individual or family.
"The key to this is is getting that trust and being able to make an objective assessment against risk and then having the tools available to to assist with that and what this contract is doing is, is widening and deepening that toolbox," said Mr Blair-Pilling,
The Police are generally the front line of these issues, with cases being referred to the Council-FearLess partnership.