Legal News

St Helens Council on Merseyside has said that a new ten-week programme to help children recover from the effects of domestic violence is being rolled out across St Helens.

The Domestic Abuse Recovering Together (DART) programme aims to help children aged 7 to 14 by strengthening mother-child relationships through a range of activities.

The council says that sessions promote communication and help families to move forward after the perpetrator of the abuse has left the relationship.

DART is based on the Talking to My Mum research undertaken by the University of Warwick, which shows that children's outcomes are improved if the non-domestically abusive parent is supported to take an active part in the child's recovery from domestic abuse.

The programme is the result of a partnership between St Helens Council’s Child in Need team and Warrington-based NSPCC specialists.

St Helens Council’s Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Young People, Councillor Andy Bowden, said:

“The DART programme has been successfully delivered in Warrington since 2012 – and we knew that it would benefit people here in St Helens too.

“The NSPCC has helped us to put our own DART team together and worked closely with us while we’ve got the new service off the ground.

“However we’re now at the stage where the council is ready to run its own programmes with minimal – and, eventually, no – support.

“We recognise that domestic violence and abuse can affect anyone – and while DART has been developed specifically for women and children, there are other support services available locally and nationally for men, including the St Helens Independent Domestic Violence Advocate, Worst Kept Secret, the Men’s Advice Line and the Merseyside-based charity CALM.”

With the NSPCC’s help, St Helens Council says it has delivered two successful DART programmes, helping ten local families – with a third currently in the planning stage.

Duncan Lewis Domestic Violence Solicitors

Duncan Lewis domestic violence solicitors offer specialist legal help to victims of domestic violence on how to tackle the issue within the law – and can advise on domestic abuse between spouses or partners, same sex domestic abuse, child-parent domestic abuse, elder abuse, domestic violence between other family members, friends or flatmates, psychological abuse, financial abuse and controlling behaviour.

There are Duncan Lewis offices nationwide and Duncan Lewis advises on family law under the laws of England and Wales and Islamic law.

Our domestic violence solicitors offer supportive legal advice to victims or those at risk of FGM, honour crimes, spouse abandonment and forced marriage.

For expert legal advice on tackling domestic abuse, call Duncan Lewis domestic violence solicitors on 0333 772 0409.

For help with an urgent domestic violence matter, call the Duncan Lewis Solicitors 24-Hour Emergency Helpline, where a family lawyer is available 24/7.