Slide 12 - Main policies surrounding domestic violence – Domestic violence, crime and Victims act 2004 –
This is the biggest law which is put in place to attempt to put a stop of domestic violence (Home office, 2005). Its main aims are to:
• Make anyone over the age of 16 liable if there is a child death. Under this act, it states that anyone over this age can be charged with the offence of causing or allowing the death of the child if they live in the same household at the time of the incident (Matczak et al, 2011).
• Protect any victims or witnesses of domestic violence. Agencies will have to carry out a statutory multi-agency domestic homicide review, which will ensure that agencies can work together to protect and support any victims or
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However, the victim may be threatened with abuse or intimidated if they attempt to intervene. Example - a mother may be threatened with abuse herself if she tries to save her child, leaving her helpless (Matczak et al 2011).
Effects
• The amendment of this act which now states that anyone over the age of 16 can be found liable of child death means that there is a procedure if there is no clear perpetrator of the domestic violence (The Guardian, 2009).
• By making it an offence to cause or allow a death, it ensures that prosecutions are made to people who may otherwise have stayed silent or blamed someone else for what has happened (NSPCC, 2016).
Slide 14 - Other main polices
Besides the two main polices described previous, other polices include:
Adoption and Children Act 2002 – this act amended the definition of harm from the children’s act of 1989. It now states that children that have suffered any long or short terms affects from witnessing domestic violence can now be give a child protection plan as well as a child that has been physically harmed from the abuse (NSPCC,