Charity praises Devon and Cornwall Police for progress made in handling domestic abuse and stalking cases

Citizens Advice Cornwall have been working with the Force

Author: Sophie SquiresPublished 30th Oct 2024
Last updated 30th Oct 2024

Devon and Cornwall Police are being praised for progress made in handling cases of domestic abuse and stalking.

It comes a year after a report by Citizens Advice Cornwall (CAC) criticising the Force, based on experiences of people seeking help from the charity.

The report, Police Handling of Abuse Cases, highlighted people's experiences of being "ignored and undermined" by some officers, "slow or no evidence retrieval" and "risk assessments not done, or not acted on".

Devon and Cornwall Police accepted 17 of the report's 19 recommendations and asked the charity to work with them on getting cases reviewed and training for officers.

CAC say progress made in handling cases has "positively improved" the service that the Force gives victims.

Since publication of the report, the charity's Victims of Crime Co-ordinator, Allison Livingstone, has taken part in monthly meetings with Moonstone officers (the specialist police domestic violence and stalking unit).

Allison has also spent the day at the police headquarters at Middlemoor to better understand the work of a team, who has seen a massive increase in these types of crimes over the last five years.

Allison said: "While I think there is a lot of work still to do, it has been very encouraging and inspiring to work with Moonstone officers.

"They have welcomed us in and spoken with candour and courage about the challenges and failures.

"We believe it is this type of 'critical friend' partnership working that will ultimately lead to long-term change for victims of gender violence."

Chief Inspector James Honeywill of Devon and Cornwall Police said: "We welcome the update from Citizens Advice Cornwall with whom we have developed a valued and constructive working relationship.

"We acknowledge the profound harm domestic abuse causes within society and are committed to developing and enhancing our services, aspiring to the highest possible standards. Working with Citizens Advice has been invaluable in developing a better understanding of how victims of domestic abuse perceive our actions.

"We have reflected and learned from feedback and improved processes, training and messaging across our workforce. We were delighted to introduce Allison to our teams and I welcome her observations of the time she spent with our dedicated officers and staff.

"Progress has been achieved over the past year but there is still much more we continue to improve on to support victims.

"We look forward to continued collaboration with partners, including Citizens Advice Cornwall, with a view to delivering the best possible service to victims and their families."

Allison adds that CAC is now working directly with the Crown Prosecution Service on scrutiny and training.

Citizens Advice Cornwall Chief Executive, Jon Berg, said: "Recently the National Police Chiefs’ Council has called violence against women and girls a national emergency and Citizens Advice Cornwall continues to press for change.

"We are taking on more specialist team members to help deal with victims of all crime, not just domestic violence and stalking, and we will continue to feed in locally, regionally and nationally on these issues with our clients' voices the most important thing we can share."

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