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Specialist Domestic Violence Court Programme Resource Manual
This resource manual is for use in those areas that are developing a specialist domestic violence (DV) court system as part of the Specialist Domestic Violence Court (SDVC) Programme. It is referred to as a system because, although it has the court processes at its heart, it also refers to early identification of DV incidents particularly policing, health and social care interventions, through to specialised and generic victim support.
Title: Specialist Domestic Violence Court Programme Resource Manual
Author: Specialist Domestic Violence Court Programme Expert Panel
Date published: March 2006 (Revised March 2008)
Number of pages: 92
Availability: Download full manual (PDF) 
PDF 305Kb, Download full manual (Word) 
Word 2.5Mb LARGE FILE!
The specialist court programme is a co-ordinated community response to DV that combines both criminal justice interventions (eg dedicated DV prosecutors) and non-criminal justice interventions (eg independent DV advisors). Together they form a multi-agency response that creates greater victim safety and brings perpetrators to account.
The Programme identified 11 core components (now increased to 12) that each area setting up a court system should consider. For the system to work effectively, close co-ordination of all these components is required and key individuals need to be identified and held to account for the delivery of their section of the service system. The components are:
- Multi-agency partnerships with protocols
- Multi-agency risk assessment and risk management procedures for victims, perpetrators and children
- Identification of cases
- Specialist domestic violence support services
- Trained and dedicated criminal justice staff
- Court listing considerations
- Equality and diversity issues
- Performance management
- Court facilities
- Children's services
- Managing perpetrators
- Other services
This manual addresses each of these 12 components and explains in detail how they operate and interact with each other. They have been drafted by members of the SDVC Programme 'task force': a wide ranging group of experts and consultants who have developed a particular expertise in one or more aspects of the delivery of local domestic violence strategies.
Component 8 - Data collection and monitoring
The following templates should be used in conjunction with Component 8 of the Resource Manual. They have been designed in collaboration with members of the Specialist Domestic Violence Court Programme Expert Panel who represent the agencies/services concerned (i.e. Police, CPS, Courts, Probation, RESPECT and CAADA - Co-ordinated Action Against Domestic Abuse), and are therefore appropriate for those agencies from which we need to extract the data.
Each template is available in Word and Excel formats. The Excel format for independent domestic violence advisors (IDVAs) was prepared by CAADA and also gives reference to a more detailed form if SDVCs would like to access it.
Revised data collection forms (please commenced using these updated forms from 1st April 2008)
- Court service data collection form
Excel 35Kb
- IDVA data collection sheet (Excel only) Excel 168Kb
- IDVA guidance Word 31Kb
- Probation SDVC data collection form Word 30Kb
- Voluntary sector data collection form Excel 28Kb
- Voluntary sector data collection form Word 66Kb
Specialist Domestic Violence Courts - good practice examples
This section covers a number of good practice examples which have been identified by the national Specialist Domestic Violence Court Programme which can be referred to by local partnerships wishing to develop SDVCs:
- Wigan and Leigh SDVC victim satisfaction questionnaire Word 29Kb
- Wigan and Leigh SDVC protocol Word 51Kb
- Wigan and Leigh interagency agreement Word 31Kb
Last update: Monday, August 11, 2008