This report considers the interventions to address domestic abuse and keep people safe, placing these in the legislative context of the Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (VAWDASV) Act 2015.
The Welsh Government asked the Wales Centre for Public Policy to revisit the evidence on interventions to keep people safe, specifically in terms of international evidence on service provision, as well as to consider the development and implementation of the Act. This paper considers the role that refuge provision has in Wales, other interventions which complement and reduce the need for refuge provision, and how the Act has been implemented. This was done through an international evidence review, and engagement with key stakeholders across the VAWDASV sector.
This report was commissioned in 2019 and completed before the Coronavirus pandemic. As a result, it does not take into account developments – both in policy and events – that have taken place since March 2020. However, the findings remain as relevant and important – if not more so – given the evidence of increased domestic abuse during lockdown.