Statement on the Government’s Autumn 2024 Budget
SafeLives is committed to ending domestic abuse and supports the Government’s ambition to halve violence against women and girls within a decade. Sustained cross-departmental collaboration and investment will be vital to back the strategic changes required along with a real commitment to put the voice of survivors at the heart of policy making – this year’s Budget isn’t explicit about this, and we look forward to seeing how this becomes reality in the new cross-departmental VAWG strategy. ‘Fixing the foundations’ is just as crucial for this area of work.
SafeLives has championed a whole-picture approach to domestic abuse for nearly two decades, advocating for a system that brings organisations together to centre the voices of survivors, prioritises prevention, and supports specialist domestic abuse practitioners. With recent data indicating that around 79,000 adults and 100,000 children are considered to be at the highest risk of serious harm or murder each year in England and Wales, the need for a system-wide response is clear. This requires strategic investment in specialist resources, integration of multi-agency data, and a holistic approach to support the whole family – including perpetrator accountability.
We were disappointed to see the 3.2% cut in Home Office spending (though welcomed the modest 4.3% increase in Justice spending) and very much hope that this cut does not come at the expense of the services and systems which support victims and survivors of VAWG. We call for other key departments – particularly Health and Education, which already bear so much of the cost of crisis response to victims – to contribute to vital prevention work. Domestic abuse should not be invisible in their list of priorities.
Key Areas of Investment and Reform:
Whole-System Reform and Cross-Government Collaboration
Effective reform cannot be achieved in silos. SafeLives welcomes the Government’s emphasis on joined-up working between the Home Office, Ministry of Justice, and other departments such as Health and Education. As departments start to implement plans for the funding outlined in the Budget, we want to see a real commitment to setting clear, practical expectations on what needs to be delivered and to workforce development in all these areas for anyone who might be in contact with victims and survivors – the systems and tools can only be effective alongside a trained workforce.
Strengthening the Idva and Isva Workforce
We welcome the news about Raneem’s Law and DA specialists in 999 control rooms. Alongside this, we want to see further funding for Idvas and Isvas and domestic abuse frontline staff who support across all risk levels. SafeLives’ current Ministry of Justice funding has increased access to subsidised training for small specialist by and for services and has supported Idva training for hundreds of practitioners, yet demand for services continues to exceed capacity. We call for continuation funding to support this work and to address ongoing gaps and rising caseloads with a further 300 Idva roles by 2026.
Evolution of risk assessment frameworks – SafeLives also wants to work with the Home Office to see an evolution of Dash and Marac, the other key elements of the risk pathway. There’s a clear need to evolve risk assessment frameworks to reflect the needs of diverse survivors, including children and those with intersecting vulnerabilities, and to recognise what we now know about coercive control, economic and tech abuse, whilst retaining a common language and understanding around risk. We hope Departments will work together to enable holistic, effective system change.
Data-Driven Interventions and Evidence Building
Accurate, integrated data is critical for identifying trends, targeting services, and shaping effective interventions. SafeLives supports developing a national Domestic Abuse Data Dashboard to consolidate data from Marac, case management, and health records to give a holistic picture. Additionally, mapping Idva service availability and outcomes will enable more equitable and effective funding decisions across England and Wales, and further work to promote safe information sharing and better use of technology to identify risk and get families supported to safety, sooner.
Improving Outcomes in the Criminal and Family Courts
SafeLives recognises that both criminal and family court systems can retraumatise survivors. To address this, we propose specialist training for Idvas working within these settings, inspired by our work in Scotland, where SafeLives developed the first accredited standards in Domestic Abuse Court Advocacy. With additional resources, court officials and advocates will be better equipped to ensure trauma-informed practices and support better outcomes for survivors. We are keen continue our successful embedded practitioner model, which we began with Cafcass, which is leading to positive changes in policy and approach which should help to improve outcomes for domestic abuse cases in family courts.
Investing in Prevention and Expanding Perpetrator Programmes
The Budget doesn’t specifically reference investment in prevention and perpetrator programmes and we hope these are prioritised by relevant Departments. Domestic abuse is a public health crisis, and prevention must remain a primary focus. Currently, fewer than 1% of perpetrators receive interventions, leaving a significant gap in accountability. We recommend expanding initiatives such as the Drive Partnership and developing new responses tailored to different perpetrator profiles. This approach will support the Government’s mission to halve VAWG by addressing accountability before harm escalates. As a key partner in Drive, SafeLives is pleased to work on the DAPO pilots and we want to see an extension of these and further support for scaling up existing proven routes to earlier support, including the National DA Helpline and programmes such as IRISi which increases referrals from NHS settings – often the first point of contact.
A call for a comprehensive, long-term commitment
SafeLives stands ready to support the Government’s mission to halve VAWG by the end of the decade. By committing to long-term investment in specialist services, data integration, and a whole-picture approach, the Government can achieve measurable progress towards this goal.