Decision details

The report contains an exempt annex which is NOT FOR PUBLICATION in accordance with paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1972 in that it contains information relating to the prices submitted by bidders.  The public interest test has been applied to the information contained within the exempt annex and it is considered that the need to retain the information as exempt outweighs the public interest in disclosing it as to do so could compromise the Council’s position in any future procurement exercise for such services.

The Cabinet Member approved the award of the contract for the delivery of domestic abuse and sexual violence support services within Peterborough to Peterborough Women’s Aid (PWA) for a total of £1,126,670.  The contract includes the following services, tendered in two Lots:

·         Integrated Support Service for very high, high and medium risk victims of domestic abuse and/or sexual violence;

·         Specialist therapeutic interventions for children and young people who have experienced domestic abuse and/or sexual violence.

The contract will operate for the period 1^st April 2014 to 31^st March 2017, subject to funding being available for each year, with the option for the Council to extend for a further twelve months to 31^st March 2018.

The issue of domestic abuse and sexual violence have been highlighted nationally by the Government’s Call To End Violence Against Women and Girls. In March 2013, the definition of domestic abuse was changed to allow 16 and 17 year olds to be considered as victims.

At a local level domestic abuse is a priority of the Safer Peterborough Partnership and local needs assessments have highlighted the prevalence of sexual violence, particularly experienced by young people. During this year, work is underway to build on the existing work relating to sexual violence and expand the Domestic Abuse Strategy to enable a fully joined up approach to addressing all forms of domestic abuse and sexual violence in the city, across all the partner agencies.

Domestic abuse and sexual violence support services have traditionally been commissioned and delivered separately. However, domestic abuse and sexual violence are not mutually exclusive. By integrating the services  a more comprehensive and joined up service can be provided which places the victim at the centre.

Lot 2 has been developed to address the gap in local services for children and young people affected by domestic abuse and/or sexual violence.

The contract will be funded through the budget held by Peterborough City Council’s Communities Directorate, and consisting of previously split budgets of Public Health and Children’s Services 

The following options were considered and rejected:

Option 1 - Continuation of current services.  This option was rejected for three reasons:

a)      The current model is inefficient due to provision being split across providers and those services being very small.  The restructure of services through the new tender allowed the interventions for domestic abuse and sexual violence to be brought together to provide both greater capacity and resilience for the service

b)      Integration offers a service centred around victims rather than split according to funding channels and minimises the risk of a victim “falling between” the provision

c)       The lack of specialist provision to support children and young people affected by domestic abuse and/or sexual violence has been highlighted in local needs assessments. Continuation of the current model of services would not address this gap.

Option 2 - Do not provide domestic abuse or sexual violence support services:

This option was rejected because the Strategic Needs Assessment undertaken by Safer Peterborough Partnership clearly highlighted domestic abuse as a priority, Ofsted echoed this.  The Young People’s Sexual Health and Wellbeing Needs Assessment highlighted the gap in services to support young victims. Academic research shows experience of sexual violence in childhood and adolescence increases the likelihood of repeat victimisation in adulthood. Therefore, sexual violence services are needed to prevent future repeat victimisation.

In addition, by providing services, domestic abuse and sexual violence within the city can be reduced, thereby improving safeguarding of children; reducing crime; improving health outcomes for individuals; and improving the quality of life for all residents.  

None unless otherwise stated.

None unless otherwise stated in the CMDN.