Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to help ensure that specialist mandatory training for all police and other relevant government agencies is in place to support black women and girls affected by domestic abuse.

This Government is committed to ensuring that all victims of violence against women and girls get the support they need. The Valerie’s Law petition calls for police and agency training to help them better understand the lived experiences, needs and barriers of black women affected by domestic abuse. We know that domestic abuse affects a disparate group and that a “one size fits all” approach is not appropriate, especially for ethnic minority victims. Training is an important part of tackling and responding to domestic abuse, but this needs to form part of a wider approach of guidance and support.

We recognise the aims of the Valerie’s Law petition and agree it is essential that police receive the right training to respond effectively, regardless of the victim’s background. The College of Policing’s foundation includes police ethics and self-understanding, hate crimes, ethics and equalities, and policing without bias. Specialist training for officers dealing routinely with public protection issues explores these issues in more depth and detail.

The College of Policing has also developed specialist training, the ‘Domestic Abuse Matters’ programme, which helps first responders dealing with an incident or report. This considers the needs of different victims, including those from a diverse black community and ethnic minority communities. This training is being delivered to the majority of forces already, and the Home Office will provide up to £3.3 million over three years to support further delivery.

The new full-time National Policing Lead for Violence Against Women and Girls, DCC Maggie Blyth, has included building trust and confidence as a key pillar for delivery: this includes working with charities supporting ethnic minority women and girls to avoid their specific needs being overlooked.

Finally, the Government committed during the Parliamentary debate to meeting with the College of Policing and with representative community organisations to ensure that police training continues to address these issues fully and effectively.