Democracy

Issue - meetings

Domestic Abuse Bill

Meeting: 15/06/2021 - Executive (Item 17)

17 Domestic Abuse New Burden Funding - Provision of Support within Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation Services for 2021-2022 pdf icon PDF 311 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Mayor and Lead Member for Children’s Safeguarding, Adult Social Care and Public Protection and the Director of Adult Social Care and Health Integration submitted a report for the Executive’s consideration.  The purpose of the report was to request delegated powers for the Director of Adult Social Care and Health Integration and Chair of the Domestic Abuse Strategic Partnership, in consultation with the Executive Member for Adult Social Care, to undertake a needs assessment, revise strategy (see Appendix 2 of the submitted report) and allocate funding as per intervention/decisions to meet the statutory duties outlined in Domestic Abuse Bill.

 

The Government was introducing new statutory duties on local authorities ensuring that all victims, including children, had access to safety and support within safe accommodation when they needed it. In March, Middlesbrough’s share of the New Burden funding had been announced and published.

 

The funding had been awarded specifically to meet the cost of provision and support in safe accommodation, for victims and children, and the administrative new burden relating to local authority costs of delivering the new functions under the duty. Local authorities were expected to finalise plans for implementation of the duty, which would mean that victims should not be turned away from refuge and safe accommodation and be enabled to access life-saving support to help them recover and rebuild their lives.

 

To do that, Middlesbrough Council, with support from Middlesbrough Domestic Abuse Partnership Board, would conduct a needs assessment to determine the level of need for domestic abuse support for victims /survivors residing in safe accommodation and publish a revised version of the Preventing Domestic Abuse Strategy by August 2021.

 

ORDERED

 

1.     That the local needs assessment be undertaken based on the expectations set out in the Needs Assessment Template (Appendix 2).

2.     That the terms and conditions outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding be approved (Appendix 1).

3.     That the Director of Adult Social Care and Health Integration, in consultation with the Executive Member for Adult Social Care, receives delegated authority to sign off the needs assessment, the strategy and allocate funding for the project up to £394,865 per intervention/decision.

 

REASON

 

The Director of Adult Social Care and Health Integration was the Chair of the Middlesbrough Domestic Abuse Partnership and the officer who would be responsible for undertaking the needs assessment and revising the Preventing Domestic Abuse Strategy reports to Head of Prevention, Access and Provider Services in Adult Social Care.