Information for professionals

Support networks for staff and professionals

VAWG forum

The VAWG forum is a quarterly two-hour meeting held on the last Friday of the month. The forum is an inclusive space where we share good practices, raise awareness of VAWG in Lewisham and enable practitioners to stay updated with local, regional, and national policies that impact the sector.

The forum does not make operational or strategic decisions directly, but it does advise, feedback and support the VAWG Steering Group. 

Professional membership is exclusive to professionals from the voluntary, community and statutory sector working directly within the VAWG sector in Lewisham and the south London area. 

Membership is subject to review by the Chair and Deputy Chair in partnership with the Local Authority. 

For further information contact:

Email vawg@lewisham.gov.uk 

Athena

The Athena service, run by Refuge, provides confidential, non-judgmental support to those living in the London Borough of Lewisham who are experiencing gender-based violence. Our services support women and girls aged 13 and over, and men aged 16 or over – including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or are unsure of their sexuality. The Athena service also supports transgender clients who identify as male, female, as another gender, or are questioning their gender identity.

Contact details: 
Telephone: 0800 112 4052
Email: lewishamvawg@refuge.org.uk
Website: refuge.org.uk

Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC)

We work alongside other agencies to ensure the safety of women at high risk of domestic violence and abuse. Key agencies in Lewisham meet once every four weeks to discuss Lewisham’s highest risk victims. 

Information about the cases are shared in detail and decisions are made to increase the safety, health and wellbeing of domestic violence and abuse victims. These meetings also consider the perpetrator and looks at what intervention is available for them.

Contact details for more information:
Telephone 020 8314 6512
Email dvmarac@lewisham.gov.uk

Lewisham Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme Group

The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS) is also known as Clare's Law. The scheme allows the police to release information about a person's history of violence or abuse.

Under the scheme there are two elements, the 'right to ask' and the 'right to know'.

Under the 'right to ask', you can make an "application for disclosure". This means you can ask for information about a partner’s criminal history.
The 'right to know' enables partner agencies at the DVDS Group of their own accord. If they believe someone's safety is at risk from another, they may raise a request for information for an offender’s past. This means a potential victim can make an informed decision about the relationship.

Anyone who wishes to make an application under the DVDS are asked to call Lewisham Police on 101 or email our community safety team on dvmarac@lewisham.gov.uk.

Training

Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) training for staff and professionals is managed through the Lewisham Safeguarding Children’s Board (LSCB). The training programme is available free to Lewisham professionals.

Find out more about the LSCB training programme for staff and volunteers.

Domestic homicide reviews (DHR)

Domestic homicide reviews allow information to be learned from deaths that occur because of domestic violence and abuse.

When domestic homicide happens, the law says that professionals involved in the case must review what happened so that they can:

• identify what needs to be changed
• reduce the risk of it happening again in the future

When do DHRs happen?

When a domestic homicide takes place in Lewisham, the police immediately inform the appropriate services and reach a decision about whether a domestic homicide review is necessary following Home Office guidance.

Domestic homicide is defined as the death of a person who is over 16 as a result of neglect, abuse or violence by: 

• a relative
  
• someone who they were or had been in an intimate personal relationship with 
• a member of the same household