Domestic Abuse
Our Domestic Abuse Team, based within the Family Protection Unit, work with partner agencies, providing help, support and information to anyone experiencing domestic abuse.
The local police form a pivotal role in the Dumfries and Galloway Domestic Abuse Strategy, which recognises as its overarching aims:
- Prevention –to work to prevent domestic abuse in the future, making it clear that domestic abuse is never acceptable.
- Protection – to ensure that there is appropriate protection in place through legislation and policy for those who experience domestic abuse.
- Provision – to ensure that there are adequate services provided to address the needs of those who experience domestic abuse, which are appropriate and relevant.
- Partnership – to ensure that all of those with a role in tackling domestic abuse work together, recognising their own and other’s responsibilities in this.
- Progress – to ensure that those involved carry out appropriate data collection, monitoring, evaluation and review of work to address domestic abuse.
Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary recognises that domestic abuse is a sensitive and emotive subject but one which must be dealt with positively to ensure that the needs of victims and their families are protected.
With the assistance of a number of partner agencies, a Domestic Abuse Standards of Service policy has been written to reflect the needs of the domestic abuse victims and their families, ensuring that the policing response is professional, consistent, lawful and correct.
Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary was the first Scottish force to publicise such a Standards of Service policy and the first force to sign a Service Level Agreement with the Area Procurator Fiscal service. This Service Level Agreement has now been replaced with a joint protocol, namely the In Partnership Challenging Domestic Abuse Protocol, between the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS) and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS).
