Joined-up Strategy Needed To Protect Women And Girls From Violence | Letter

In your study (Government not learning lessons from deaths of home maltreatment victims, study finds, 15 July), the domestic maltreatment commissioner rightly calls for nan government’s strategy connected unit against women and girls to “link much intimately to nan NHS plan”. We work together and would spell further – nan attack to unit against women must beryllium joined up crossed each applicable authorities departments, agencies and nationalist services.

As barristers, we spot unit against women and girls, coercive/controlling behaviour and home maltreatment regular – not only successful nan criminal courts, which you would expect, but besides successful our family courts, wherever it’s estimated by nan Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service and Women’s Aid Federation that home maltreatment allegations are coming successful more than 60% of private law children cases.

To return a constrictive position of unit against women and girls by looking only done nan lens of nan criminal justness strategy would miss countless opportunities to forestall harm. As nan authorities finalises its strategy complete nan summer, we impulse ministers to return a wide and joined-up approach.
Barbara Mills
Chair, nan Bar Council