Agenda item

Francesca Bell, PPASB and Licensing Service Manager:

a.    presented the revised Internal Domestic Abuse Policy for consideration prior to referral to Executive

b.    advised that the City of Lincoln Council had a legal and moral obligation to ensure that the workplace was safe in relation to supporting victims of Domestic Abuse

c.    explained that the Councils Internal Domestic Abuse Policy was last revised and updated in 2014 and so following changes in legislation and more detailed definitions produced a policy refresh was required

d.    referred to the revised policy at appendix A of the report and highlighted the following changes:

                      i.        A detailed definition had been provided in section 2 of the policy to reflect the current legal definition and the complex nature of domestic abuse.

                    ii.        The sections involving domestic abuse in the workplace had been reworded and updated for ease of reading to ensure they were robust and fit for purpose.

                   iii.        Section 7: safety at work had been added to provide guidance on what the council may do to support and keep safe victims of Domestic Abuse whilst they were in the workplace.

                   iv.        Section 9: recording of concerns had been added to set out how concerns would be recorded confidentially.

                    v.        Section 11: raising awareness in the workplace had been added. This section set out how the council would raise awareness of this policy and the support available for those experiencing Domestic Abuse.

                   vi.        Section 12: legislation had been added to the policy to set out the relevant legislation that related to domestic abuse and the Councils obligations to protect employees.

e.    invited members questions and comments:

Question: Commented that it was good to see that this issue was taken very seriously by the Council and asked if the policy would be updated more regularly in future.

Response: The Policy would be reviewed on a regular cycle and any major changes would be updated as and when required.

Question: Asked if the policy had been shared with outside agencies for consultation.

Response: The procedure for internal policies had been followed, the policy had been consulted on internally but not externally.

Question: Referred to paragraph 5.1 of the policy regarding the sharing of information with partner agencies and asked if the reasons why data may shared could be made clearer in the policy.

Response: The policy could be updated to give reasons for the data sharing.

Question: Referred to the definition of domestic abuse as detailed at paragraph 2 of the policy and asked if when the policy was publicised to staff that it be made clear that it was not just for inter-partner abuse but also included family members.

Response: Confirmed that it would be made clear to staff.

Question: Asked if training had also been provided to members of staff who visited people’s homes to spot domestic abuse.

Response: All staff had received a basic level of training, depending on the job role, more in depth training was provided.

Question: Referred to paragraph 5.2 of the policy in relation to disciplinary offences and asked if action would be taken in both incidences.

Response: Action would be taken in both incidences; the policy would be updated to reflect this. Any disciplinary action would be overseen by Human Resources.

RESOLVED that that the updated Internal Domestic Abuse Policy be supported subject to the changes above and referred to Executive for approval.