Partnership working in action: Findings from the evaluation of the Worcestershire Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Panel

A multi-agency Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Panel (DAPP) was established to facilitate referrals to the Drive perpetrator programme, and coordinate actions to disrupt offending behaviour of domestic violence perpetrators. A longitudinal mixed method evaluation was conducted to understand the how the DAPP worked in practice, including referral and decision-making processes, and the wider influence on local multi-agency partnership working.
Partnership work to address perpetrator behaviour was regarded as a previously absent – but much needed – element of a coordinated whole-family approach for addressing domestic abuse. The DAPP was police led, with decision-making influenced primarily by partners from the Drive Team, Independent Domestic Violence Advocates (IDVAs), and Probation. Other partners were supportive but had less influence on decision-making. Administering the DAPP was resource intensive but facilitated additional intelligence and information sharing, with benefits of involvement for DAPP partners extending beyond the actual meetings.
Of the 574 perpetrators referred to DAPP, 42% were subsequently referred to Drive. There was a significant reduction in the mean number of domestic abuse incidents in the 12 months after referral compared to the previous 12 months. Implications for practice will be discussed.