Domestic Abuse Training in Gloucestershire

We wish the training to complement the DA Matters training which has been rolled out in force over the last two years. The Voice of the Child training intends to reinforce the responsibilities that police have when engaging with children and young people experiencing domestic abuse or neglect within their own home.

The training will support in improving force practices, and the impact that domestic abuse perpetrators have on children and young people witnessing domestic abuse, highlight the importance of safeguarding young people and reinforce the crucial interactions that young people in these scenarios will have with the police. This training will address HMIC and Op Salus recommendations to prioritise attendance at incidents involving children.

Priority training will be offered to operational officers in local policing teams and the Force Control Room initially, however the expectation is that this will be rolled out across the force. The sessions should cover points within the Vulnerability knowledge and Practice Programme (VKPP) “Voice of the Child” briefing, which outlines the responsibilities that police have when engaging with children and young people.

The training will include evidence based strategies and tools to help build personnel confidence, support police to engage with children in the most appropriate way and to hear their voice and experience. The funding available for this training has been received by the OPCC, from the Home Office through the Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Fund for 25/26.

We wish to deliver this training to up to 600 officers, through initial training with the provider, and a train the trainer mode by the 31st March 2026. There is £66,300 available.

Overall the aim is to train approximately 600 officers in this training within this financial year. This training will support Gloucestershire Constabulary officers in rolling out learning from DARDR’s in the county.

We anticipate this training to cover; • Identify the prevalence of suicidal behaviour within the context of DA for both victims and suspected perpetrators • Explain the effect of CCB on victims of DA including the long-term impact on quality of life and safety. • Identify relevant legislation to investigate the perpetrator when a victim has attempted or succeeded in taking their own life within the context of DA • Describe theories of suicidality that explain how CCB causes a victim of DA to consider or attempt suicide • Identify evidence gathering opportunities, including types / patterns of evidence specific to investigating suicide where CCB is suspected. • Identify and explore the specific questions which officers need to be asking a victim once they believe or the victim has implied that they are having suicidal thoughts. • Explain the importance of accurate recording and risk assessment whenever CCB is disclosed • We anticipate this training to be rolled out to 100-150 officers by the 31st March 2026. The funding available for this training is £13,990.

Participation in this Market Engagement exercise is voluntary, and non-participation will not preclude any party or organisation from taking part. The proposed structure of this Market Engagement exercise will be as follows: - Initial engagement via Market Engagement Notice (11th June 2025) - Official Invitation Outlining Event Details (9th July 2025) - Market Engagement Event (11th July 2025) This event will take place online via Microsoft Teams, please register your interest in attending and the Teams request will be sent no later than two days prior to the day.

The agenda for the event will be a presentation provided by stakeholders from OPCC/ Force, followed by an open Q&A session. This notice does not formally signify the beginning of any procurement exercise by the Commissioner, nor does it constitute a commitment by the Commissioner to undertake a procurement.