Remote legal support for domestic abuse victims

Background

The number of police recorded domestic abuse (DA)-related crimes in England and Wales in the year ending March 2023 was 14% higher than in the year ending March 2020, this follows increases in previous years. Demand on DA helplines has also increased and in the year ending March 2021 the police made only 33 arrests per 100 DA-related crimes and the CPS charging rate for DA-related crimes decreased to 70%.

DA has myriad effects; on survivor physical and mental health, as well as their family and social networks. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, many support services were required to deliver their services remotely. Although restrictions have been lifted, remote service delivery appears to have been beneficial.

One such service is WEPROTECT, developed by the Domestic Abuse Alliance. It provides free legal information and assistance to survivors. A referral is made by police officers via a mobile application (app) to an in-house team of call-takers and case workers who work with a network of solicitor’s firms.

This mixed method evaluation will assess the roll out WEPROTECT to new police forces and its effects on revictimization and mental wellbeing of survivors when compared to a control group.

Our approach

We will aim to evaluate the effectiveness of WEPROTECT intervention by completing the following work packages:

1. Scoping exercise and Theory of Change (ToC) - rapid review of similar online delivery models in the area of DA nationally to help develop a ToC for WEPROTECT
2. Process Evaluation – understand the implementation and experience of the service. Will include police officers, commissioners, referrers, victim-survivors.
3. Impact Evaluation - will aim to understand the effectiveness of the WEPROTECT regarding revictimization and mental wellbeing (via the SWEMWEBS question set), ideally via a randomised controlled trial.
4. Economic evaluation to understand the cost effectiveness of the WEPROTECT service.

Visit the WEPROTECT services website for more information.

Developing evaluation for remote domestic abuse services

The COVID-19 lockdowns led to increased police callouts and helpline use for domestic abuse, prompting domestic abuse services to adopt remote approaches, though few have been evaluated or co-designed with survivors. This study assessed the WEPROTECT service through process and impact evaluations, involving interviews with key stakeholders and analyzing outcomes for 3,358 DA survivor cases. Participants included solicitors, police officers, service staff, and survivors, most of whom were women with male perpetrators.

• 5 solicitors
• 156 police officers (89 from Greater Manchester, 40 from Sussex and 27 from West Midlands Police)
• 16 Domestic Abuse Alliance staff (who run the WEPROTECT service)
• 34 DA survivors. All but one survivor was female. The average age was 34 years. 73.5% were White British. 91.2% of DA participant cases had a male perpetrator.

Evaluating the WEPROTECT service

The WEPROTECT app and portal allow police officers to refer domestic abuse (DA) survivors to Domestic Abuse Alliance staff, and to solicitors, for support.

Survivor experiences were varied:

• Many liked WEPROTECT’s fast response and flexibility
• Contact speed and recounting experiences can be distressing
• Certain groups felt less supported

Police officers were positive about WEPTOTECT’s useability:

• Appreciation for simple, fast referrals
• A non-police option for accessing civil order was welcomed
• Some expressed concern about how the service fits with existing local provision
• Officers showed varying understanding of WEPROTECT’s full offering

Domestic Abuse Alliance – Domestic Abuse Alliance (DAA) staff noted the diverse skill set required:

• Empathy, patience, legal knowledge and emotional resilience all key skills
• Staff are committed to supporting DA survivors

Solicitors appreciated the efficiency of WEPROTECT:

• The quick provision of case files and supporting evidence improved timescales for legal action
• Pairing survivors with non-local solicitors caused difficulty for firms and risked making partnerships financially unviable.

Recommendations for rollout:

• Ensure access and buy-in from all police ranks
• Communicate clear boundaries between free and costed legal support; match with local solicitors
• Integrate with existing local DA services
• Provide in-person training for police officers

Repeat DA incident reported over six months vs a control group, in Sussex a 20-30% drop, in the West Midlands a 40% increase. Both results are statistically significant and reflect increases in reporting. Contact with WEPROTECT may improve mental wellbeing, especially for survivors who secure a court order.