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Funding bid to support children affected by domestic abuse in Bristol
Some 4,000 victims of domestic abuse were identified in Bristol last year alone – and the majority of those affected had children.
Recognising this is a huge issue for the city, the council is applying for £845,000 in government funding for support to reduce the harm caused to families and the lasting impact on the lives of young people.
If successful, the bid money will pay for a therapeutic, evidence-based approach, aimed at helping children who have experienced domestic abuse to overcome trauma.
is needed now More than ever
“This is a huge issue for the city,” Helen Godwin, Bristol City Council’s cabinet member for women and children, told a meeting at City Hall on Tuesday.
“More than 75 per cent of the children supported by Children and Families Services have been impacted by domestic abuse.
“This bid, if successful, will genuinely help us unlock one of our key barriers to healthy, happy children in Bristol.”
She added that domestic abuse features in 68 per cent of social work assessments completed in the city, which is significantly above the national average of 50 per cent.
The Children’s Charter was launched in Bristol this year
Backing the bid for funding, mayor Marvin Rees spoke of his own childhood experience.
“It’s something that affected me as a kid, that’s why I ended up living in a refuge for a little while.
“The importance of timely interventions to support women and their children to make sure they do not end up on that downward spiral of increasing vulnerability, with all the consequences that has for lifetime development. Those moments of oasis and feeling of safety are massively important.
“It’s part of the collective responsibility we have to our children.”
The funding will enable the city to extend existing support for older children to those under the age of eight.
Programmes will be delivered by Next Link, Bristol Children Centres, Bristol City Council’s Strengthening Families Teams and the Through Care Service.
The total amount of £845,330 will pay to train practitioners in theraplay (therapy through natural play and interactions), video interactive guidance and non-violent resistance nurturing, as well as special crèches and family programmes and courses.
While the grant period is only up to March 2020, Godwin said the council intends to make the programme sustainable by embedding the project and training proposal within the existing workforce, thereby retaining capacity to deliver interventions after the funding ends.
It is hoped the project will support parents and children to break the cycle that is associated with domestic abuse.
Read more: Bristol’s new Children’s Charter launched
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