Agenda and draft minutes

Please note that this meeting may be filmed or recorded by the Council for live or subsequent broadcast via the Council’s internet site or by anyone attending the meeting using any communication method. Although we ask members of the public recording, filming or reporting on the meeting not to include the public seating areas, members of the public attending the meeting should be aware that we cannot guarantee that they will not be filmed or recorded by others attending the meeting. Members of the public participating in the meeting (e.g. making deputations, asking questions, making oral protests) should be aware that they are likely to be filmed, recorded or reported on. 

By entering the meeting room and using the public seating area, you are consenting to being filmed and to the possible use of those images and sound recordings.

The chair of the meeting has the discretion to terminate or suspend filming or recording, if in his or her opinion continuation of the filming, recording or reporting would disrupt or prejudice the proceedings, infringe the rights of any individual or may lead to the breach of a legal obligation by the Council.

The Chair referred Members present to agenda Item 1 as shown on the agenda in respect of filming at this meeting, and Members noted the information contained therein.

Apologies had been received from Councillor Zena Brabazon, Councillor Nick da Costa and Jackie Difolco.

The Chair will consider the admission of any items of Urgent Business. (Late items of Urgent Business will be considered where they appear. New items of Urgent Business will be considered under Item 8 below).

There was no urgent business.

There were no declarations of interest.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2024 as a correct record.

To view the Action Tracker.

RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2024 be agreed as an accurate record.

Noted.

The theme for this Board will be on victims and will be in the form of a workshop where facilitators will be leading table discussions about the work your service does around supporting and reducing victims. 

Mr Joe Benmore, Mr Sandeep Broca and Ms Heather Hutchings introduced the report.

The meeting heard that:

·      The Government had talked about extreme misogyny as part of their extremism review. The Council did a training session regarding misogyny. Concerns had been expressed from schools that talked about hate crime, but did not meet the threshold for prevent intervention. Some of the concerning attitudes expressed in class from students appeared to be happening at an earlier age.

·      The Council had a VAWG team that crossed directorates such as Public Health and Housing Related Support. The Council commissioned a range of specialist services in Haringey and had a ten-year strategy recognising VAWG as an issue. The Council had a VAWG strategic board and a new domestic abuse policy for residents. For International Women's Day, the Council did 16 days of activism and had done events summer including for Euro 2024. A training programme would be commissioned.

·      Domestic abuse was treated as a top priority amongst the Police. Any domestic incident was reported and this would go to the Public Protection Team who would investigate it. Any outstanding named suspects were also a priority.  

·      The Council commissioned a whole host of organisations to support victims. Access was available to local and regional services. These were well promoted by the Council.  Part of the initial interaction with victims included the Police referring victims to those services. It would be helpful for those referring the services to be aware in more detail of the services they were offering. Safer Neighbourhoods Training or a talk session may be helpful.

·      The Police had a high turnover of officers at the Community Safety Unit as they moved into other areas after being in the unit.  

·      The Council had an online directory where one could download posters, flyers and referral forms.  

·      More men-led interventions were necessary in relation to VAWG.

·      Previously, IDVA, Probation and Substance Misuse services were all located in the same place. This could be re-examined as data showed this was useful. This could be an action taken forward and reported to the Board at a future meeting.

·      A summit could be held with housing associations regarding criminality on housing estates. Victim Support could be given an invite to open a stall at the event.

·      Support for (straight) male victims of domestic abuse at Haringey was not present. Some VAWG organisations would not work with male victims.

·      Rates of abuse in same sex relationships were equivalent to the rates in heterosexual relationships.

·      Referral forms for local authorities appeared to all be different. The same was true with safeguarding forms.

·      The Council had perpetrator interventions which were MOPAC funded. There were interventions for men from ethnically ‘minoritised’ backgrounds, women using abusive behaviours and also LGBT perpetrated interventions and Child and Adolescent to Parent violence and abuse interventions as well.

·      MOPAC had gone out to tender for an intervention capacity after a first-time domestic abuse offence.

·      The Council dealt with issues relating to gang members. The Council  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The meeting noted that upcoming meetings would be held in person.

The next meeting would be around February or March 2025.