MultiAgency Risk Assessment Conferences

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Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conferences

• Carole Devaney
• Public Health Programme Manager

2
Co-ordinated Community Response

• Home Office Programme
• Specialist Domestic Violence Courts (SDVCs)
• Independent Domestic Violence Advisors (IDVAs)
• Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conferences (MARACs)

3
Cost Benefits

• Estimated 23 billion
• Direct costs 6 billion
• Individual case up to 14k
• Reducing revictimisation could
• make really significant savings
• in criminal justice, health,
• social care systems
• Human life and misery

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MARAC

• Mechanism for identifying and responding
  collectively to very high risk victims of
  domestic violence
• In a single multi-agency panel meeting, up to
  date risk information is combined with a
  comprehensive assessment of the needs of victims
• These can often be met through the direct
  provision of appropriate services for victims,
  children and perpetrators

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Aims

• Share information
• Determine the level of risk posed by perp(s)
• Construct and implement a risk management plan to
  reduce harm
• Reduce repeat revictimisation
• Improve agency accountability

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Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland MARAC

• Chair Police
• Co-ordinator hosted by police
• Membership standing core members plus
  individuals drafted in as required
• Victims do not attend
• Advocates IDVAs
• Frequency 1 per month
• No of cases 20 and rising
• Accountability agencies retain accountability
  for their own actions

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Process

• Agencies refer very high risk victims to
  Police/IDVAs or refer into MARAC directly
• MARAC risk assessments undertaken
• List of cases that meet the threshold sent to
  member agencies 8 days prior to panel
• List returned to co-ordinator with any relevant
  info held by agencies
• Each case discussed for about 10 mins
• Risk management plan agreed
• Actions should be completed by next meeting and
  relevant information disseminated to staff by
  MARAC rep

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Why invest in MARAC?

• DH Responding to Domestic Abuse handbook
• Way of improving responses to dv victims
• Improving information flows around risk for
  adults, children, the community and staff
• Honour Based Violence and Forced Marriage
• Non Accidental Child Deaths
• Serious Case Reviews

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Fit with Strategic Objectives

• Local Area Agreement NI 32
• Repeat incidents of domestic violence
• Standards for Better Health
• Every Child Matters
• Supports the Safeguarding and Think Family agenda
• Suicide Reduction

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Risks of non investment

• Inappropriate responses
• Missed opportunities for early intervention
• MARAC is missing key information held by LCCHS
• AE and Mental Heath Trust participating
• Information about risks to adults and children
• not available to LCCHS staff
• Information about risks to staff not available
• to LCCHS

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Business Case

• Initially LCCHS represented at MARAC by named
  nurse for child protection issues around
  capacity and cost
• So Public Health (Commissioner) sponsored and
  developed with LCCHS (the provider) a business
  case for a specialist nurse to
• Act as a specialist dv resource
• Increase the profile of MARAC s and encourage
  referral
• Provide capacity to deliver the MARAC agenda
• Develop training around identification and risk
  assessment
• Audit our engagement with the MARAC process
• Grade 7
• Small budget for training/ venues etc
• Based in childrens services but working across
  childrens and adults (Think Family)

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Issues

• Increasing number of cases threshold raised
• Very long day
• Capacity to split MARAC into City/Counties
• Information sharing for health around a third
  party hosted data management system Modus
• Consistency of representation
• MARAC risk assessment process not used by health
  refer to IDVAs
• Very few men and even less lgbt individuals

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But it works!

• Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland
• In December 2007 10 cases
• In April 2009 27 cases
• Between June 2008- May 2009 - 233 very high risk
  cases
• 114 cases referred by the IDVAs
• 89 cases referred by police
• 24 (10) repeat cases
• 367 children
• Several adults in need of safeguarding
• Reopened or new child protection cases
• Honour based violence / forced marriage
• Alcohol a feature of a large number of cases
• Small number of male/ lgbt victims
• Improved information sharing
• Better joint working practices
• More consistent service to victims