CHANGE
1991-1992 ANNUAL REPORT
Foreword
CHANGE has continued to develop and progress over the past year
with the ongoing support of the Courts in Central Region. In
formal terms, all concerned await with interest the outcome of a
research and evaluation study funded by the Home and Scottish
Offices which began in May 1991.
Project staff have continued to encourage collaborative
inter-agency practice over domestic violence and to offer
training and consultancy to other professionals working in this
area. It is particularly pleasing to note that during the last
year a positive relationship has developed between staff of the
recently formed Offenders Section of the Social Work Department
and Project staff which promises much for the development of
imaginative practice in this important work.
This Annual Report will be of interest to those for whom the
issue is already an agenda item. I commend it to many others
whose interest might lie in exploring effective innovations in
this area of work.
Ian Ross
Director of Social Work
Central Regional Council
COMMENT FROM THE CHIEF CONSTABLE
As Chief Constable of Central Scotland Police I am pleased once
again to be allowed the opportunity to endorse the work
currently being undertaken by the CHANGE Project. No longer can
‘Domestic Violence’ be treated as anything other than criminal;
however, due to its sensitive nature, people have to be trained
to understand the complexities of working in this area.
Having a project such as CHANGE in Central Region has allowed my
own officers direct contact with its co-ordinators who are now
regular visitors to my Training Department, giving inputs to
many in-service courses.
I was particularly pleased in January this year to welcome
delegates from all over Britain and from a host of professional
backgrounds to Stirling University to explore and focus on
current work practice and experience in responding to domestic
violence, which proved to be of benefit to all who participated.
Changes in work practice and attitudes towards such a sensitive
issue as domestic violence take time, and I look forward to a
further year of development and innovation, allowing for a more
professional approach to this issue.
William Wilson
Chief Constable
Central Scotland Police
CONVENOR’S REPORT
On behalf of the Management Committee, I am pleased to introduce
the CHANGE Project’s second Annual Report.
The Project is now well into its third year. As will be seen
within the Project’s own report it continues to develop and
expand, both in the operation of the men’s programme and in the
growth of CHANGE training, information and consultation work
with a wide variety of agencies within Central Region and
Britain as a whole.
The Management Committee itself has developed considerably
despite changes in its membership. We were particularly sorry to
lose our founder members, Doctors Rebecca and Russell Dobash due
to their move to Wales but look forward to retaining
professional contact with them in other aspects of CHANGE’s
work.
During the last year the Management Committee has increasingly
developed a positive managerial style, effectively utilising the
varied backgrounds and diverse skills of its members. This
process has been assisted greatly by Central Regional Council’s
creation of an Urban Forum and other training initiatives.
The Management Committee would also like to extend its
appreciation to the members of the Advisory Group, individuals
whose work brings them into contact with domestic violence.
Their contributions have proved most stimulating and informative
for both Committee members and Project staff.
During the last year we have seen the introduction of 100%
Government funding of Social Work services in the Criminal
Justice system. For the CHANGE Project, the setting up of a
specialist offender service has brought improved liaison at
management level and with social workers. Possible implications
of 100% funding on the future funding of the Project are
presently being examined by the Management Committee in close
partnership with the Social Work Department.
The dedication of the staff, Dorothy Anderson (Administrator),
David Morran and Monica Wilson (Joint Co-ordinators) remains a
major factor in the Project’s development to date and I welcome
this opportunity of thanking them on behalf of the Management
Committee for their efforts and achievements.
Sue McLaughlin
Convenor
CHANGE Project
THE CHANGE PROJECT
The CHANGE Project was established in September 1989 following
the committed work of a number of individuals from Women’s Aid,
the legal, academic and social work professions, whose efforts
had been successful in securing Urban Aid Funding through the
sponsorship of Central Regional Council Social Work Department.
The main aims of the Project are to deliver a criminal justice
based re-education programme for men who have been violent to
their wives or female partners, to encourage collaborative
inter-agency practice over domestic violence, to offer training
and consultancy to other professionals working in this area and,
through publications, the holding of conferences and
contributions to other conferences, to raise generally the
profile of the issue of domestic violence.
Staffing and management
CHANGE is staffed by two co-ordinators and an administrator.
Staff are responsible to a management committee comprising
representatives of Scottish and local Women's Aid and
individuals who are concerned to achieve the goals of CHANGE. A
Constitution lays down the objectives and functions of the
organisation. Management committee meetings are held on a
six-weekly cycle.
In addition, an Advisory Group comprising representatives of
local statutory and voluntary agencies meets twice yearly to
provide advice and information to the management committee.
The memberships of both these bodies are listed at the end of
this report.
The CHANGE Programme perspective
CHANGE’s position is that men's violence towards their female
partners stems from a fundamental inequality in the male/ female
relationship which is rooted in patriarchy, and engenders men's
need to secure and maintain power and control in relationships.
From this perspective, men's abuse of and violence towards women
is seen as learned and intentional behaviour rather than the
consequence of individual pathology, stress, alcohol abuse or
the fact that he lives in a 'dysfunctional relationship'.
Traditionally men have been assumed to have the right to
exercise power and control over women and children, both in
general terms as well as in personal relationships. Ultimately
the wider responsibility for solving the problems of family
violence lies with a change in social attitudes and changes in
the way our institutions respond to these manifestations of male
power. Within this context, programmes for men who abuse women
are viewed only as one aspect of a wider responsibility for
society to change.
CHANGE PROGRESS REPORT 1991-1992
The Project
CHANGE's work over the year 1991-1992 has been to continue
running the men's programme as a criminal justice resource, to
review the programme structure and content, and to continue
developing our training and consultancy remit.
The Men's Programme
Referrals and throughput
Up to the end of March 1992 a total of 70 men had been referred
to CHANGE for consideration for the men's programme. Of these 42
were requests for assessment reports from Falkirk Sheriff Court,
17 from Stirling Sheriff Court, 6 from Alloa Sheriff Court and 5
were enquiries from social workers.
Over this last year we have assessed 27 men of whom 17 were
considered suitable for the programme, 2 we were unable to
contact to undertake assessments and 8 men were assessed
unsuitable. Among the main reasons for considering men
unsuitable are the man's denial of any responsibility for his
violence or his unwillingness to address the issue and therefore
unlikelihood of his benefitting from the programme; the
prevalence of a serious drug or alcohol problem; or a work
commitment, such as a job off-shore, which would make him unable
to attend the programme.
Of the 17 assessed as suitable candidates, 15 men were referred
to the programme by the courts but in 2 cases this option was
not taken up. Of those 15 men referred,
1 failed to start the programme, 1 is temporarily suspended due
to another crisis in his personal life and
1 has been suspended for disruptive and unco-operative
behaviour. Five have completed the programme, 4 are currently on
it and 3 are waiting to commence.
Since April 1991 a total of 12 men finished the programme
working in groups of four or five and completing 18 sessions on
average. A further seven have still to finish.
Eligibility and referral
The main referral sources for the men's programme are the three
Sheriff Courts in Central Region and Central Region Social Work
Department. Courts outwith Central Region may also refer
appropriate Central Region residents to the programme. Sheriffs
may call for a CHANGE assessment to be carried out at the same
time as the preparation of a Social Enquiry Report (SER) by
social workers. Alternatively social workers may ask for a
CHANGE assessment where they identify a domestic violence
problem while undertaking an SER, or may suggest the Court defer
sentence pending such an assessment. CHANGE is also willing to
consider accepting men who are on parole.
The assessment process
CHANGE staff interview and assess prospective participants for
the programme and submit assessment reports to Courts.
The main factors which are central to the assessment process
are: the man's history of using violence; his willingness to
take responsibility for his actions and motivation to change;
his own understanding of why he used violence; his willingness
to attend the programme and the likelihood of his benefitting
from it. He is also shown the Agreement to Participate (see
following two pages), the contract he will be asked to sign if
he is to be accepted onto the programme, and he is asked at this
stage whether he feels able to commit himself to the terms laid
out in it. The safety of the woman concerned is of critical
importance and is therefore taken into account.
Staff liaise with the social worker concerned with the SER to
discuss the man’s suitablility for the programme.
Other factors which are considered at this stage include
practical issues and the man's physical and mental competence to
participate in the CHANGE programme. For example, men employed
working off-shore are unlikely to be able to fulfil the
participation requirements. Those with a serious alcohol or
drugs related problem would not be considered suitable for
immediate inclusion, although CHANGE may indicate a willingness
to accept such a man at a future date following some
demonstration that his problem is being satisfactorily
addressed.
CHANGE Men’s Programme
AGREEMENT TO PARTICIPATE
Name:
......................................................
Address
......................................................
1. I agree that I am violent to my partner and that I am willing
to stop my violence.
2. On I was required by Court to participate in the CHANGE Men's
Programme as directed, and as a requirement of a
Probation Order.
3. I agree to complete at least 16 sessions of the Programme.
4. I agree to participate in the CHANGE Men's Programme
as directed.
5. I agree to abide by the rules of the CHANGE Programme.
I agree to contact CHANGE (Tel. Stirling 71215) if I am going to
be absent due to illness or other urgent reason. I must make up
any session missed. I understand that missing sessions without
an explanation acceptable to CHANGE may result in my suspension
from the Programme and referral back to the Social Work
Department.
7. I understand that CHANGE will report information
regarding my attendance and participation in the
Programme, or any acts of violence to the Social Work
Department.
8. I understand that CHANGE will contact my
partner to give her information concerning the CHANGE Programme
and my involvement there. She will also be advised if I am put
off the CHANGE Programme before completion.
9. I understand that violations of Probation conditions are
grounds for referral back to Court and may mean my removal from
the Programme.
I have read this and understand my requirements with the
CHANGE Programme.
Participant
........................................
Social Worker
...................................
Witness
........................................
Date
......./....../...........
Where all these factors indicate that a man is a suitable
candidate for the programme, this is stated in the assessment
report to the Court. When he next appears before the Court the
Sheriff may then refer him to CHANGE as an additional
requirement of a probation order.
Programme style
The programme is at present working with its fifth group of men.
Initially it had been planned that the groups would operate on a
rolling basis with men coming into a group as they were referred
by the Courts. This is the model which appears to have been
successfully adopted by some North American programmes and has
the advantage of speed of take-up of referrals. We began by
working with a small group of men as we developed the programme
style and content. This first group remained closed allowing us
to monitor the programme's content and men's progress closely.
With our second group we started to operate the programme on a
rolling basis but our experience was that this system has a
number of drawbacks. Newcomers find some of the material
difficult and old hands resent going back over material with
which they consider themselves familiar. It is difficult to
progress through the content of the curriculum when different
men are at different stages of the programme. The group does not
readily develop a cohesive identity or group loyalty and this
affects attendance and commitment to the work. Consequently it
was decided that we close the group and our present practice is
to work with a cohort of men each time.
Programme content
Last year's annual report gave a detailed breakdown of the men's
programme content which is still of relevance. The main
objectives of the programme are to confront and challenge men's
attitudes and behaviour, develop their capacity to accept
responsibility for their actions and equip them with new skills
which will enable them to relate non-violently towards their
partners.
Men on the programme are required to attend a two-hour group
session once a week for a minimum period of sixteen weeks. The
sessions are held in local community premises in Stirling and
Falkirk during afternoons or evenings. Men must complete a
series of modules; self contained units which have set content,
participation and completion criteria. Each module focuses on
issues relating to men's use of various forms of violence,
factors which underlie this behaviour and how it may be
overcome.
The group's working style is structured and highly
participative, and includes classwork and homework which men
must complete as part of their contract with the programme.
Our work on the programme this year has involved refining the
content and documenting such changes as have been made. The
men's own evaluations of the programme have also been utilised
in shaping its development.
Follow-up work
Another feature of the past year is the instigation of follow-up
work. As working arrangements with the new Offender Teams in the
Social Work Department were developed so we examined how men
make the transition from working in the programme to individual
work with their social worker. Men now enter a short follow-up
phase after completion of the core programme. Over a period of
seven or eight weeks the group continues to meet on a
fortnightly basis during which time individual meetings are held
with each man and his social worker. These meetings focus upon
identifying areas of individual work that the man can
incorporate into his probation action plan which will help him
to continue working on his goal of relating non-violently to his
female partner.
Monitoring and evaluation
CHANGE staff account to the CHANGE Management Committee on
issues of programme format and review. CHANGE monitors and
reviews the impact of the programme on men's attitudes and
conduct throughout their required period of attendance. Interim
and completion reports and meetings with social workers form an
essential part of this process. On men's completion of the
programme CHANGE provides written reports to Courts.
In addition to CHANGE's own monitoring, independent research
into the effectiveness of work with domestic violence offenders,
including the CHANGE Programme, is being funded by the Home
Office and Scottish Office and commenced in July 1991.
Training and consultancy work
The first phase of the CHANGE Project focused on the development
and operation of the men's programme. The second phase addressed
the training and educational role of the Project. This role is
directed at providing professional and voluntary agencies with
an informed perspective on domestic violence in order to
encourage and influence practice within a co-ordinated community
response to this problem. A wider community educative role is
also part of the Project's general educational function.
CHANGE's strategy in relation to its training and education
remit has been both proactive in terms of initiating debate, and
reactive in terms of responding to requests for knowledge,
consultation and information.
Agency-based training
CHANGE has an agency-based training strategy to inform and
influence practice in relation to domestic violence. This
involves input at trainee and in-service levels. During the
period May 1991 - April 1992 CHANGE had input into the training
of specialist offender workers in Central and Fife Regions;
community health service workers; social work students;
psychology postgraduate students; and police senior constables
and promoted sergeants.
Requests for information and assistance
Since the Project began CHANGE has received hundreds of requests
for general information regarding the men's programme, and for
assistance, consultation and support in developing policy and
practice in relation to domestic violence. These requests have
come from a range of agencies and bodies including social work,
probation departments, the police, women's units and Women's
Aid. In response, CHANGE has developed a database documenting
the nature of the enquiry, the agency or individual concerned,
the date and the action taken by CHANGE in response. All such
contacts are also recorded on a central mailing list to receive
information about CHANGE publications and public events.
CHANGE conferences
From the inception of the Project CHANGE recognised that there
was a widespread interest in working with men. We were also
aware that there was more experience in this kind of work in
North America than in the UK. We were fortunate that we were
able to draw upon the links already made by representatives of
the CHANGE steering group with some North American programmes.
Thus in 1990 we held two conferences which featured speakers and
workshop leaders from established North American men's
programmes. Both these events attracted interest from a wide
range of agencies and delegates attended from Britain and
abroad.
However, as CHANGE has developed we have become increasingly
aware of the growth of a variety of initiatives in both the
statutory and voluntary sectors aimed at tackling various
aspects of domestic violence within Britain. We felt CHANGE
could benefit from more contact with those involved. We wanted
to learn from others and to share our experiences of working in
this area.
Consequently from 29 - 31 January 1992 we held another
conference 'Responding to Domestic Violence: Practice and
Experience', to offer an opportunity for practitioners and those
interested in establishing initiatives to examine different
perspectives and methods of working with perpetrators or victims
of domestic violence, and the issues these raise concerning
future policy and practice.
That our interest was shared by others working in this area was
confirmed by the response we received to the advance information
about the conference. The limited number of conference places
was soon taken up and 110 participants attended. Those attending
came from a range of agencies and organisations both statutory
and voluntary. From the statutory sector there were participants
from the police, social work and probation departments, court
officials, youth service workers, health workers, and local
goverment members and officials. From the voluntary sector there
were people from Women's Aid, men's groups, alcohol counselling
agencies and community projects. There were also participants
from co-ordinating bodies and academic researchers.
The conference comprised a number of different events. During
the two and a half days participants were able to attend a short
conference session, a practitioners' panel, three (of four)
workshops, video viewing sessions, special interest groups,
small working groups and a final plenary session.
The conference was opened by the Chief Constable of Central
Scotland Police, Mr William Wilson who welcomed the coming
together of people from such diverse disciplines and
perspectives to learn about each others' work.
The first session was a conference style series of
presentations. It opened with a contribution from Professor
Rebecca Emerson Dobash from the University of Wales College of
Cardiff. Professor Dobash set the tone for the conference in her
address in which she talked of ‘the dream of change’. Referring
to the battered women’s movement which demonstrates how
pragmatic action can lead to political action and radical
renewal, she charged everyone to be alert to the recognition of
real change as opposed to the illusion of change, and to
distinguish what is possible from what is not.
Helen Attewell, Co-ordinator of the Keighley Domestic Violence
Forum then spoke of the aims and experience of developing a
domestic violence forum. The main aim of the Forum is to bring
different statutory and voluntary agencies together to improve
services for survivors of violence, raise awareness of the
issue, and to plug any gaps in provision by developing new
services. In this way the Forum is attempting to create an
integrated approach to tackling the problem of violence in the
home.
The conference then heard from Sergeant Collette Paul of the
Metropolitan Police who spoke about why and how the first Police
Domestic Violence Units were set up and how they operate in
practice.
The second session consisted of a practitioners' panel when the
four agencies who would be undertaking workshops over that
afternoon and the following day were each given the opportunity
to make a short presentation about their agency and its
perspective and work: themes which would be developed and
explored in the individual workshops. The agencies were Women's
Aid, CHANGE, MOVE, and North Wales Probation Service.
Women's Aid spoke of their perspective and experience of working
with abused women and their children and their view on working
with violent men. CHANGE gave an outline of its approach to
working with men in a criminal justice context. MOVE spoke of
the work undertaken with men who come to their men's programme
on a voluntary basis. North Wales Probation Service outlined the
more general work undertaken by them in working with violent
offenders in the community.
Each of these organisations ran two two-hour workshops over the
next day and a half. These were organised to permit conference
participants to attend three out of the four different workshops
on offer, and to allow workshop leaders to attend each others'
sessions.
We were aware that, given the range of organisations which were
represented at the conference, the event had brought together
people working in the same general area of domestic violence but
whose perspectives, priorities and working practices were not
necessarily in agreement with each other. We were also aware
that different groups brought different agendas with them and we
both expected and received mixed reactions to the conference
content and style.
We hoped that this event would be an opportunity for this
diversity to be examined in a positive manner and that there
would be a constructive exchange of viewpoints and experiences.
We hoped to achieve some progress towards the development of a
network for policy makers and practitioners whereby mutually
agreed principles might inform the development of all of us
working with the common goal of eliminating domestic violence.
As might be expected from such a gathering, as the conference
progressed various areas of conflict came to the surface and
emotions sometimes ran high. Feedback from participants
demonstrated the opposing views present. Some expressed a
criticism that the event was too organised leaving little space
for participants to set the agenda. They felt frustrated and
over-controlled. Others felt it had been left too open and would
have welcomed more organisation of, for example, the special
interest groups. Some felt the workshops were too presentational
in style, others expressed satisfaction with this format.
On the final morning, in response to the expressed desire of
participants, it was agreed that we depart from the planned
programme and instead of a session of workshop feedbacks, we
break into small groups to discuss issues, values, principles of
good practice and proposals for future working together. This
proved a productive decision and the wrap-up session where the
main points from the small groups were presented and discussed
indicate that despite differences, there is an acknowledgement
from all parties that we stand to gain more from co-operation
than dissent. There appears to be a willingness to work towards
developing shared principles for good practice.
The main proposals emerging from the conference were:
- A resolution by all organisations and agencies to work jointly
to tackle domestic violence by agreeing common aims and
accountability
- The development of local and national networking which should
work towards an agreed set of principles.
- A central information bank to facilitate the exchange of ideas
- The setting up of more Police Domestic Violence Units
The full Conference Report is available from CHANGE.
Future developments
CHANGE is now in its third year of an initial four year period
of funding under the Urban Programme. This next year will see
the development of a strategic plan which will focus on how we
see the work of the Project developing in the future. In
addition to the continued work to be undertaken within the men's
programme and the monitoring of the standard and quality of the
service this provides to both participants and liaising
agencies, there are a number of additional proposals which
CHANGE is currently considering. For example there has been
consistent interest from many working within the prison service
as to whether CHANGE might establish model groups for inmates as
part of an enhanced package of throughcare. There have also been
a great many requests and proposals for CHANGE to undertake
further training events at both pre- and post-social work
qualifying levels, as well as to provide a stimulating and
demanding placement for students or seconded workers.
Over the next few months CHANGE will be seeking advice, comments
and engaging in discussion with a range of organisations and
agencies on how best to build on the pilot work the Project has
undertaken so far. We are looking forward to an exciting future
and to playing our part in helping end men's violence against
women.
REPORT FROM WOMEN’S AID
Women’s Aid has had a long term commitment to CHANGE, which
continues through 1991-92. There are now three main parts to
this commitment:
Representation on the Management Committee
Support of the partners of men on the CHANGE programme
Input to conferences hosted by CHANGE.
There are currently one national and three Central Region
Women’s Aid representatives on the CHANGE Management Committee.
The function of this representation is primarily to ensure that
the needs of the partners of men attending the men’s programme,
and abused women generally, are represented in the policy of
initiatives such as this. This aim is also furthered in a
practical way by the support offered by Women’s Aid to partners
of the men on the programme. This support, and consequent
increase in workload, is recognised by the financial
contribution which each local group receives from the CHANGE
project.
In addition, in February of this year, two national Women’s Aid
workers presented two workshops at CHANGE’s conference on
domestic violence issues, held at the University of Stirling.
These workshops were well received and helped to stimulate the
lively discussion which surrounded the conference. A more
detailed account of the conference is included elsewhere in this
report.
Women’s Aid is pleased that, after two years of referrals, the
evaluation/research study is now underway. As part of this
research, the women in the local refuges, and some who have
recently left, have been approached by the researchers to
complete questionnaires and interviews detailing their
experiences. This ensures that the views of the women who have
suffered abuse are taken into account in the evaluation process.
Women’s Aid looks forward with interest to the completion of
this research, and envisages that the links we have established
with the CHANGE Project, and the women affected by it, will be
maintained in the future.
Management Committee
Professor Sally Brown
Shona Campbell (Secretary)
Elizabeth Kennedy
Doris Littlejohn (Treasurer)
James McCormick
Sue McLaughlin (Convenor)
Graeme McRoberts
Vicki Roth
Margaret Taylor
Helen Whincup
Advisory Group
Ms Eva Comrie, Solicitor
Mr Peter Crow, Sheriff Clerk
Cllr Moira Fitzpatrick, Central Regional Council
Felicity McClelland, Women’s Officer
Mr Anthony McNulty
Ms Anne Morrison, Scottish Women’s Aid
Inspector Sam Muir, Central Scotland Police
Sheriff A J Murphy
Sheriff A V Sheehan
Ms Sharon Stirrat, Victim Support Scheme
Ms Senga Turner, Education Department
Mr Keith Valentine, Procurator Fiscal
Cllr Anne Wallace, Central Regional Council
Mrs Muriel Young, Forth Valley Health Board
Sheriff R E G Younger
Project Staff
Dorothy Anderson
Administrator
David Morran and Monica Wilson
Joint Co-ordinators
