Inter-agency Approaches to Domestic Violence and the Role of Social Services

Correspondence to Gill Hague and Ellen Malos, Domestic Violence Research Group, School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol, 8 Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1TN, UK. Summary The development of inter-agency initiatives as a response todomestic violence is currently enjoying widespread popularity,and was the subject of a Home Office Circular in 1995 encouragingthis approach as one of the principal planks of government domesticviolence policy. The Domestic Violence Research Group in theSchool for Policy Studies at the University of Bristol has completeda national study of inter-agency approaches to domestic violence,supported by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, and this paperexplores some of the themes identified in the research and therelevance of multi-agency domestic violence initiatives to socialworkers. Social services departments and voluntary sector socialwork agencies have a key role to play within inter-agency workof this type. The research indicates, however, that, while somesocial workers are active within inter-agency domestic violenceforums, social services could often take a more active rolewith firm commitment from management. It could be suggestedthat social services organizations cannot afford to be absentas the new policy direction offered by inter-agency initiativescontinues to grow in the future, which looks almost certainto happen. Some of the areas explored in the paper are: powerdifferentials between member agencies; the participation (andsometimes the marginalization) of Women's Aid and the refugemovement within multi-agency work; equalities issues; and theinvolvement in inter-agency projects of women and children whohave experienced domestic violence.