<p>Domestic Violence</p>

Part of 2. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children – in the Senedd at 2:52 pm on 1 February 2017.

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Photo of Carl Sargeant Carl Sargeant Labour 2:52, 1 February 2017

Domestic violence is an epidemic, and I’m not sure—. We’ve just uncovered the top of the iceberg of this, and service delivery is challenged. And I’ve asked my senior adviser, in terms of the domestic violence adviser, which is in the Act, to look at a sustainable funding model and to see if we can work with the sector to deliver better services, longer term. I would like to invest more finances into this proposal, because the more facilities we build, the more people will access those. What is true is that, when we signpost somebody through a helpline or through a connection through health visitors or otherwise, it is absolutely critical that we have a follow-up procedure to that. Rather than just telling people, ‘You’ve disclosed’, you’ve got to ensure that there’s a service pathway in place, and I’m very keen to make sure that happens. I’m confident at the moment we can deliver, and we do, but it will get even more challenging. The more people who present—and rightly so, that they present—we will be challenged in making sure that we can deliver for these people.