Dash Questionnaire “doesn’t work”: Urgent review into approach to domestic abuse needed
EMBARGO: Immediate Release
Responding to the news that Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips has admitted the main screening tool used to decide which domestic abuse victims get urgent support "doesn't work", Liberal Democrat Justice Spokesperson Josh Babarinde MP said:
"The Government’s admission that the Dash questionnaire ‘doesn't work’ is a wake up call. Survivors of domestic abuse, who are already going through unimaginable trauma, are being let down at the very first hurdle.
“The Government must urgently review both Dash and the whole approach to domestic abuse, to make sure that survivors are properly supported throughout the system.
“The promised new strategy for tackling violence against women and girls can’t come soon enough. It must include mandatory training for police and prosecutors so they better support survivors, must cover girls who are survivors of sexual abuse and exploitation despite reports they will not be included, and must end to the appalling delays in the criminal justice system that put women’s safety at risk.”
ENDS
Notes to Editor:
- Originally reported here.
- Josh Babarinde MP is leading a campaign calling for domestic abuse to be made a specific criminal offence, following his own experience of abuse as a child. Josh’s campaign has been reported in the BBC, The Times, Independent, Guardian, Sky News and was launched on Good Morning Britain.
- Details of Josh’s Domestic Abuse (Aggravated Offences) Bill can be found here.
