The Drive Partnership

These resources were recently produced as part of a collaborative project with the DRIVE Partnership and aim to inform our response to perpetrators of domestic abuse within families where children’s social care are involved. The resources, which are also available at the DRIVE Partnership, comprise a rapid literature review, strategic briefing and podcast, and are aimed at multi-sector leaders and practitioners.​

Introduction

The purpose of this report is to provide a summarised account of a rapid literature review on approaches and models for work with people who perpetrate domestic violence and abuse (DVA), particularly in the context of families. A key aim is to provide an overview of the existing evidence base as regards to perpetrator work. It also aims to support policy and practice change within children’s social care settings, to include and engage with responses focused on addressing perpetrators of DVA, where this facilitates improved outcomes for adults and children experiencing DVA.

The report discusses various types of perpetrator interventions both in the UK as well as internationally, where they have wider applicability or learning relevant to the UK context in terms of children’s social care work with people who perpetrate DVA in families. It also identifies gaps and opportunities in this area of practice, with emphasis on the intersection with, or application to, children’s social care responses to perpetrators of DVA. It is based on a short, rapid literature review, therefore it does not provide an exhaustive or in-depth analysis, but rather a brief overview, with a detailed reference list for further reading.

This report is published alongside Working with people who perpetrate domestic violence and abuse in families: Strategic Briefing (2021), and a podcast​ with representatives from the Drive Partnership, Research in Practice and Dr Olumid Adisa from the University of Suffolk discussing the evidence base in relation to perpetrator interventions.

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