In April 2021, the Domestic Abuse Act received Royal Assent. The
Act includes new duties for councils in England relating to the
provision of support for victims and their children residing within
relevant safe accommodation.
The Act includes within Part 4 (sections 57-61) new duties on
tier 1 local authorities in England relating to the provision of
support for victims and their children residing within relevant
safe accommodation and a duty on tier 2 authorities to co-operate
with tier 1 authorities.
Under the duties tier one local authorities will be required to
convene a Domestic Abuse Local Partnership Board, assess the need
for, prepare and publish strategies and commission support to
victims of domestic abuse and their children within safe
accommodation services in their areas, and report back to central
government that they have met these obligations.
Tier 2 authorities (district, borough and city councils and
London boroughs) will be required to co-operate with their tier 1
lead authorities, so far as is reasonably practicable.
On 15 June the Government launched a consultation seeking views
on the draft statutory guidance and the following draft Statutory
Instruments:
- The Domestic Abuse Support (Relevant Accommodation) Regulations
2021
- The Domestic Abuse (Local Authority Strategies) Regulations
2021
A copy of the consultation paper is available to download from
the Government website.
The consultation closes at 11:45pm on 27 July.