Section 1:  The Conference   Conference Report The CHANGE Project came into being in September 1989 following the committed work of a number of individuals from Women’s Aid, the law, academic research and social work 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 were to establish a criminal justice based Programme - the CHANGE Programme - for men who had been violent to women, to work with other agencies primarily Women's Aid, social work, and courts to co-ordinate effective methods for tackling male violence, and to develop training strategies and educational materials for use by professional and voluntary agencies and those in the wider community concerned with men's violence. 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. From 29 - 31 January  1992 therefore we held this conference, 'Responding to Domestic Violence: Practice and Experience’, to offer an opportunity for practitioners and those interested in establishing initiatives to compare and evaluate 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. They came from a range of agencies and organisations both statutory and voluntary. From the statutory sector there were police, social workers, probation officers, court officials, youth service workers, health workers, local government members and officials; and from the voluntary sector 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 workshops, video viewing sessions, special interest groups, small working groups and a wrap-up session. The two agencies invited to make presentations  (Keighley Domestic Violence Forum and the Metropolitan Police Domestic Violence Units) were asked on the basis that they were known to us, although we are aware that there are other forums and other police domestic violence units in operation. Similarly we invited three organisations we already had contact with (Women's Aid, MOVE and North Wales Probation Service) to present workshops which we hoped would complement the conference presentations and reflect the broad range of work being undertaken around the issue of domestic violence.  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.  Mr Wilson's opening remarks follow this conference report. The first session was a conference style series of presentations.  It began with an introduction 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 broke 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   Presenters and workshop leaders were invited to submit written contributions for this report and Section 2 contains a collation of those received.  Section 3 contains conference and workshop feedback in more detail. Opening Remarks Mr William Wilson, Chief Constable, Central Scotland Police. As Chief Constable of Central Scotland Police it is indeed an honour and privilege to be given the opportunity to welcome you formally here today.  An occasion which for me personally marks a milestone in the development of a corporate strategy to challenge and address the crime that is domestic violence. The terror and hurt caused by domestic violence in relationships and families across our nation is a serious issue and one which can only be tackled credibly by those working in the field pooling their resources, exchanging academic and practical experiences and going forth in a working partnership. The next few days I hope will provide that opportunity for you, and I urge each and every one of you to take the opportunity to contribute from your own experiences and also to listen and share with others. Domestic violence, as we know all too well, is a complex and sometimes exceedingly difficult subject to challenge, and that is clearly identified by the wide and varied backgrounds of the delegates in attendance today. You have here representation from my own profession, who play an important and crucial role alongside practitioners from Social Work, Conciliation Services, Women's Aid, Probation Service, family workers, those involved with men, women and children, and a host of others. The CHANGE Project, which I as Chief Constable readily support, is but one example of the challenge that is being presented here in my own Force area, and I welcome their willingness to host this conference. Ladies and gentlemen may I wish each and every one of you a pleasant stay here in Central Scotland and a successful conference. Introduction  Professor Rebecca Emerson Dobash  Professor Dobash set the tone for the conference in her address in which she talked of 'the dream of change'. Referring to the experiences of those women who worked for changes in the response to the problem of domestic violence, 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. In discussions over the next two days she suggested participants question each of the initiatives they were here to learn about by posing the following questions:           Does this change contradict the status quo?           Does it stand apart?           Does it compete?           Will those in power listen?           Can we get it on the agenda?           Will it work? If the changes we all seek in common to eradicate domestic violence from our society are to come about, initiatives should be able to answer 'yes' to all these questions. In this way we should be able to take 'the dream' forward.    Section 2:   Conference Papers   Paper 1       Developing Keighley Domestic Violence Forum                    Helen Attewell  Introduction  The main aim of Keighley Domestic Violence 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 we are attempting to create an integrated approach to tackling the problem of violence in the home.  Our success has been partly due to Keighley being a relatively small, well-defined area, but can mostly be attributed to the involvement and commitment of a wide range of local agencies, from Police, Social Services, Health Visitors, Probation etc., to Women's Aid, youth groups and community centres.  Setting up the Forum  The current polices and practices of the Forum have evolved over a period of several years of information gathering, numerous meetings to identify needs and discussions as to how we are going to achieve our objectives.  In 1988 research was conducted in the Braithwaite area of Keighley which identified domestic violence as a major local issue which was not adequately being addressed.  Indeed, as in most areas of Britain, woman abuse was found to be endemic, and accepted as a 'normal' part of family life.  This finding prompted a group of activists including Women's Aid, and Braithwaite Community Project to initiate the Keighley Domestic Violence Forum as an inter-agency lobbying group.  The first task the Forum undertook was to conduct a survey of 190 agencies and interested individuals to determine the scale of local need.  This was not conclusive, but the consensus of opinion seemed to be 'yes, there is a problem', 'yes, something should be done about it', but 'no, we don't have the resources to take on any more responsibilities'.  Major concerns were:  1.    Lack of reporting to the police and other agencies  2.    Need to improve co-ordination of existing services to increase support for women  and children  3.    Need to investigate services to deal directly with violent men to break the chain of violence  In order to find out more information about other groups and projects working on these issues and to develop a local strategy, the Forum hosted a national conference in October 1989.  The aim was to learn from others' experience in a similar way to this CHANGE conference and prioritise work for the future. It was also an opportunity to publicise the issue of domestic violence in the local media and encourage participation in the Forum from a wider range of groups and organisations.  The success of the conference assisted the Forum in obtaining funds from Bradford Safer Cities Project (i.e. the Home Office money for crime prevention) to employ a part-time Co-ordinator from February 1991.  Work in Progress  Having identified the key issues for the Forum - i.e. interagency co-operation, awareness raising, support services for women and children and work with violent men - the next stage was to set up working parties of interested agencies and individuals to develop a plan of action to put our ideas into practice.   Interagency  The interagency approach is of course key to all our work and we still have regular Forum meetings which provide an opportunity for information sharing, creating links between organisations, networking to facilitate referrals, with the aim of providing a cohesive range of services for abused women and their children.  As an umbrella organisation representing the views of many different groups, we are able to lobby for more services and for changes in social policy more effectively than as isolated individuals.  In order to create a wider awareness of the issue and to increase the sensitivity of workers dealing directly with abused women, we have run a number of interagency training days as well as training sessions for individual agencies.  Although we would prefer organisations to attend the interagency days so they gain an understanding of each others' roles, we recognise that those attending these days are often the committed few who already have a lot of knowledge and experience.  We were therefore particularly pleased to get involved with the Police's Equal Opportunities training sessions which will eventually reach all members of the local force.  From the wider Forum a number of different interest groups  have been established including the Women's Support Group, the Asian Women's Group, the Worth Project which works with violent men and a group looking at preventative work with young people in schools and youth clubs. Women's Support Group  The first group to be set up was the Women's Support Group, which is a self-help group for women survivors of domestic violence.  All women are welcome whether they are still living with a violent partner or have left home and are resident at Women's Aid, or have moved on to a new home but still feel isolated and in need of support.  The group is a very informal means of offering advice and counselling or just social space for women to meet and exchange experiences and plans for the future.  Women become stronger and more self-reliant through helping others, for example, in planning to leave a violent relationship, or providing support at a Court hearing.  The women have also helped develop publicity about the group in the form of posters, leaflets, cards and stickers.  They have been interviewed for newspapers and radio programmes and are currently involved in making a video about their experiences.  There is always a lively creche on offer at the group but we do not feel that we are adequately addressing the needs of children.  One of our plans for the future is to provide more counselling for children who are emotionally disturbed and more support for mums who are having difficulties with their kids' behaviour.  We did manage to organise a break for the women and children at the Women's Holiday Centre last year and hope to plan more trips in 1992.  Asian Women's Group  Keighley has a sizeable Asian population originating from the Mirpuri region of Pakistan and Sylhet in Bangladesh.  People from these areas were attracted to Keighley in the 50s and 60s by employment in the textile mills and engineering firms.  There is now widespread unemployment in both black and white communities.  A short research project in June and July (1991) identified the urgent need to expand the project to cater specifically for Asian women's needs for advice, counselling and support.  Asian women facing violence in the home have particular difficulties especially if the are unable to speak English.  There is a lot of mistrust and fear of statutory agencies, a lack of knowledge of their legal rights, a confusion about residency rights and a fear of deportation if they leave their husband.  The greatest fear is that they may face being ostracised by family and friends if they take any action, since this may be perceived as sullying the family honour.  Although there is no new provision for Asian women established as yet, an Asian Women's Group has been meeting regularly since June last year, so at least there is some co-ordination between existing services, e.g. health visitors, community workers, interpreters etc.  We are currently fundraising to employ two outreach/support workers who would be able to provide advice and counselling for women and who would also do preventative work with men and boys from the Asian community.  Violent Men's Group  The men's group is locally known as the Worth Project reflecting its location in the Worth Valley and also recognising that lack of feelings of self-worth is often one of the contributory factors in domestic violence situations.   Estate-based community workers had observed a disturbing trend for violent men to move in with one family, abuse their partner, traumatise the children and then, with few sanctions other than a derisory fine or suspended sentence to condemn their actions, simply to move on to a new family to repeat their violent behaviour in another household.  It became clear that supporting the woman, increasing arrest rates, advocating injunctions etc, although all vitally important, were not tackling the root of the problem, men's sexist assumptions and their violent behaviour.  The Worth Project evolved from many months of reading and research, meeting with different practitioners in the field and discussions and debates within the planning group.  The actual programme of activities was devised by the group facilitators largely based on their own professional experience with ideas gleaned from a number of sources.   Our service is currently based entirely on self-referrals.  Not surprisingly we are generally contacted at a time of crisis when the woman has just left or obtained an injunction or the police have been involved for the first time.  In the future we hope that men will be instructed to attend our sessions as a condition of probation in a similar way to the CHANGE Project.  When men first contact us they are met by a volunteer from the project at a neutral venue.  This gives us a chance to communicate our expectations about the men's commitment to the group and answer any questions about the way it is run.  Often there is an outpouring of pent-up emotion which has never been expressed verbally before.  At this stage anyone whose main presenting problem seems to be rooted in something else, e.g. drugs/alcohol, will be referred on to the appropriate agency.  Details of the man's partner are also obtained (if known), so that we can invite her to join the Women's  Support Group.  The group is run by three facilitators, a woman and a man leading the group and another woman acting as an observer to support the lone woman and supervise the group leaders.  The group activities are discussion-based, focussing on changing attitudes as a basis for changing behaviour.  The group situation enables men to challenge each other, learn from each other, and most importantly, gain strength from each other in their struggle to change.  The men in the group represent a wide cross-section of society from business owners to long-term unemployed.  Some have attended regularly, others have turned up on a one-off basis.  Since the group started meeting in October there are still many unresolved questions: how do we induct new men to an established group; what is the optimum timescale of involvement; what kind of follow-up can we offer; how do we develop our links with the probation service; will our method of working still be valid when confronting unwilling participants; will we achieve any long-term success?  We are still very much at an experimental stage and for this reason we particularly value the opportunity to meet other practitioners at a gathering like this, and hope that some kind of national network can be established for the future.  Schools and Youth Clubs  The last area of work we would like to develop further is work with young people in schools and youth clubs.  We recognise that as a 'preventative measure' it is essential to challenge children's gender stereotypes and attitudes towards violence from as young an age as possible.  We have run a series of training courses for teachers which looked at how they might identify children whose emotional/behavioural problems stemmed from violence in the home, and how they might be supported at school.  We also explored activities which could be introduced into the curriculum to challenge sexism and encourage verbal expression of feelings. In addition, one of the workers from a local Youth Centre has established a pilot Young Men's Group which, whilst not exclusively aimed at offenders, tackles many of the issues dealt with by the Worth Project.  Initially the group's popularity seemed to stem from a reaction to the widely resented 'girls only' night, established a few months previously.  The young men have shown a genuine interest in the issues discussed, however, and have remained committed to attending in spite of a vociferous campaign to boycott it from several individuals who find it very threatening to their macho image.  This is the type of work which we would like to see extended throughout the area and adopted as a model of good practice for youth work.  To sum up, the Keighley Domestic Violence Forum is seeking to influence social policy by challenging organisations in a positive way and involving them in the work of the Forum.  We see this integrated approach to tackling violence in the home as the way forward for agencies throughout Britain.    Paper 2       The Women's Aid Context                    Women’s Aid  Here we outline the Women's Aid philosophy which is derived from the experience of abused women and their children, and how both philosophy and experience direct our practice.  Globally the pattern of domestic violence is that it is overwhelmingly men who abuse women and children.  Gender based social inequality is the only explanation to fit the experience of all the women who contact Women's Aid for help.  Therefore we are certain of the need for radical social change if domestic violence is eventually to be eradicated.  This understanding implies that abused women and violent men are not somehow identifiably different from others in the society in which they live, or from us, the 'practitioners in domestic violence'.  There will be both in any audience or group of any size.  Twenty years of hearing and understanding women's experience has shown us:  the effects of abuse:  -      denying women freedom and safety  -      disempowering and disabling women  -      isolating women and damaging their self-esteem  -      leaving women fearful, uncertain and immobilised  This awareness has led us to a philosophy which encompasses:  self determination    -      we offer women and their children a safe place to stay where they can have space and support to consider their options  -      we work to offer women choices and information  -      we work to empower women to make choices  -      we try to ensure we do not have or encourage any working practice which eliminates or restricts women's right to choose or her choices  -      we recognise that escaping violence is a process, not an event, and may take years, and several attempts; therefore a woman must be enabled to choose a life free from violence at her own pace (it cannot be successful if forced upon her)  -      we build on our knowledge that it was necessary for women themselves to work together to provide a means for women to escape violence in the home - the state and/or society did not provide appropriate help consistently  self help:  -      we work to ensure that the voice of abused women is incorporated into everything that we do  -      we work to encourage abused women to become involved throughout the organisation  -      we recognise that any woman can be abused, therefore any man could be abusive  -      we are a woman only organisation  -      we work to provide opportunities for sharing experiences, and mutual support, recognising the value of doing do for women who have become isolated as a result of abuse  -      we campaign for services and mutual interests not recognised or provided by others  ways of working:  -      we work and organise to overturn power structures  -      we promote non-sexist, non-racist, non-violent, non-competitive ways of working  -      we demonstrate that a positive alternative to the oppressive conditions women live under is possible and achievable  -      we work to enable women to take part in all aspects of the work, and to take decisions readily  -      we work collectively  -      we recognise and work to overcome the difficulties which arise from the subordinate position of women in society    It is useful here to be aware of the development of Women's Aid in Scotland.  herstory of SWA:  -      20 years on from very small beginnings filling a vacuum in provision for abused women and their children through a user-defined service  -      a unique social movement offering direct urgent practical help as well as a movement for change in society aimed at long term eradication of the problem while applying the principles of the required change throughout the movement itself  -      some notable achievements - the growth of the movement and its provision - legislative improvements and policy statements - some good and well founded practice integrated into the work of many agencies - some recognition that the voices of abused women and their children need to be heard  -      but still too many gaps, in refuge provision, in rural areas, in follow-up work, in provision for children, in legal support, in educating for the future, etc etc etc                                                                                                                      current provision:  -    17,257 women seeking help (nearly 50 every day, numbers increase significantly every year)  -      only 254 refuge spaces (compare this with the recommendations of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Violence in the Family (1976), who recommended 500 spaces, and COSLA (1991), who recommended 735 spaces)  -      3,898 women turned away to less suitable options (this number also increases yearly)  -      these figures represent the tip of the iceberg because, for example, women do not usually contact after the first violent incident  -      we offer information, support and refuge  -      our support includes follow-up work after the refuge, and as women request  Therefore, Women's Aid work encapsulates these principles:  •      prioritising the safety of women and children  •      empowering women  •      working to enforce women's right to a life free from violence for herself and for her children  •      working to increase the choices open to women in society  •      thus working to change the nature of relationships between women and men  These principles embody the crucial aspects of social change emphasised within Women's Aid work, but......  Women's Aid and Work with Violent Men  How does work with violent men fit into the Women's Aid context?  Women's Aid recognises that, if there is to be a wider movement for social change, it is necessary for someone to address the question of what is to be done about the men - if men are to be enabled to take responsibility for their violence and play their rightful part in ending it. Therefore CHANGE is an experiment Scottish Women's Aid has agreed to participate in.  We do have some misgivings about all work with violent men, and in particular about whether that someone should be an organisation working for abused women and their children.  Our philosophy will not allow us to accept any project/programme which:  -      is not founded on the premise that the man is fully, solely and unequivocally responsible for his violence, and for stopping it, and thus completely rejects any form of victim-blaming or prescription for the woman's future behaviour  -      does not help a violent man to understand how he has come to learn that his violent behaviour is an effective tool which he chooses to use to reach a position which he has also learned is acceptable, and must now learn is not  -      does not ensure that their work is adequately responsive to the needs and views of abused women themselves  -      does not recognise that it must take action to ensure resources for safety for women if it is to be credible (consider the local situation of Falkirk Women's Aid to that of the CHANGE Project)  -      allows or encourages the decriminalisation of violent assaults against women because they are committed by men with whom they do or have lived          Even when programmes do meet all the above requirements, there are some other concerns to raise on behalf of abused women and their children:  -      the existence of a programme means increased danger for women, both for the individual women whose partners are on the programme, and also for abused women generally because public complacency can arise and be reinforced because society seems to be dealing with the problem  -      difficulty of ensuring the safety of women while monitoring the effectiveness  -      the possibility that any men's programme will have the effect of decriminalising domestic violence - even if only because of the very small numbers of men who ever get into the criminal justice system in the first place  -      there may be competition for resources for domestic violence work between men's programmes and Women's Aid  -      the role of non-criminal justice based programmes - what are the messages given to women, men and to society at large ?  -      the possible use of men's programmes within diversion schemes  -      ambivalent responses from authorities/agencies equate with abusers' denial  -      what is our role, how do we feed in without diverting the resources which are for women ?  -      professionalisation of services for abusive men may:         (a)        limit the programme's ability to take direction from abused                     women         (b)        lead to greater recognition of them as a response to domestic                     violence, and therefore divert attention and resources away                     from work for women, and/or         (c)        detract from positive perceptions of the decisively non-                     professional approach taken deliberately by Women's Aid  -      the message given to women and men and society at large by the proliferation of programmes, or the swelling interest in men's programmes, when there isn't even any evidence to show they work.  Thus Women's Aid participation is itself an experiment inside another experiment/pilot.  We do adhere to the ideal that basic social change requires that men must give up advantage and share the power that belongs equally to women and men.  We cannot yet know if programmes like these will bring about the necessary life changes for men, as the work of Women's Aid has done for women.  We remain ambivalent about the potential for success without the deep-rooted structural change in society which will enable equal relationships across the gender divide.  Undoubtedly the seeds of change have been planted, but we still have to see if they can flourish.     Paper 3       CHANGE                    David Morran and Monica Wilson   Background and Aims The CHANGE Project came into being in September 1989 following the committed work of a number of individuals from Women’s Aid, the law, academic research and social work 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 were to establish a criminal justice based Programme - the CHANGE Programme - for men who had been violent to women, to work with other agencies primarily Women's Aid, social work, and courts to co-ordinate effective methods for tackling male violence, and to develop training strategies and educational materials for use by professional and voluntary agencies and those in the wider community concerned with men's violence. The Need For a Programme to Confront Men's Violence The need to develop a service which dealt directly with men who were violent to women came about largely as a response to the frustration and anger felt by all those agencies whose work brought them into contact with domestic violence.  For Women's Aid and for social workers, concerned for the victim of the violence, or obliged by statute to address the safety of children in the home, there was the acknowledgement that women might be living with or returning to violent men whose behaviour remained unchecked and unchallenged. For sentencers dealing with those men whose violent offences actually came before the courts there existed the apparently limited and unsatisfactory options available when dealing with men.  A fine on the man would fine the family.  Imprisonment might provide the valuable service of temporarily providing protection for the woman as well as registering society's disapproval, but would do nothing to confront the man himself who would in due course return to the community, and in most cases to the relationship. For women who had experienced violence there was the difficult choice of severing the relationship either by leaving or by keeping the man out,  neither an easy option.  Where she made the equally difficult choice - to remain in the relationship - she lived in the hope that the man would change, and that the violence would somehow stop.  CHANGE : A Resource to the Courts  The CHANGE Programme was set up therefore to work as part of a co-ordinated response to confronting domestic violence and to deal specifically with men who carried out that violence.  CHANGE was fortunate in being able to draw on the experience of similar programmes which had been operating in the US and Canada for many years, and were well-placed to benefit from the experience, knowledge and links which Drs Rebecca and Russell Dobash, formerly of Stirling University, had in this field.   CHANGE was also committed to the  principle that domestic violence - men assaulting women - was a criminal act, and this had to be taken into account in the way we would work with men.  Much of the US practice had emphasised the need for effective programmes to be tied to the criminal justice process, committed to the idea that violence is a matter for police and courts, and running accountable programmes as resources which these agencies could utilise.  The Referral and Assessment Process  Where men have appeared before the court on a charge where domestic violence has been identified as an issue and have pled or been found guilty, Sheriffs may call for a CHANGE Assessment of a man's suitability for the Programme to be carried out at the same time as social workers undertake a Social Enquiry Report.  In this process we are concerned with a number of principal areas:  the type of violence the man has used to his partner; the history, frequency and severity of that violence; whether and to what extent he takes responsibility for his violence and his motivation to stop it; and the potential safety of the woman involved.  As admission to CHANGE is as a condition of a Probation Order the man necessarily remains in the community.  It is therefore necessary to ensure that such a sanction does not endanger his partner.  It is recognised that at the time of interview a man will have his own agenda for saying he wants to stop.  He is often remorseful and anxious perhaps to stay out of prison or to get his partner back.  As to the last, he is told that acceptance onto the programme offers no such guarantee and that his partner will be contacted to be given details of the programme.  She will be told that her safety and wishes are paramount and that the sanction on her partner places no deliberate obligations on her.  Some of the material which men have to tackle on the programme will require an ability to learn from and to analyse past behaviour so it is necessary to look at a man's ability to handle such material.  Flexibility in material presentation ensures that literacy problems alone do not prevent a man being accepted.  A commitment and willingness to learn is of greater importance.  Where men are recommended for the CHANGE Programme they must understand and agree to comply with a document called an Agreement to Participate.  This is a specific requirement of his Probation Order.  The man is made fully aware of its terms during the assessment and once the Probation Order has been made by the Court the document is signed by CHANGE, the man and the social worker concerned.  Liaison with the social worker involved, and specified areas of work are important features of men's contact with CHANGE.  Men are also aware that any non-compliance with the terms of the Programme will be referred back to his social worker and quickly dealt with.  The Programme presently operates as a sixteen-week block, comprising two-hour weekly sessions which are held in the local community on weekday evenings from 6.30 - 9.00 pm.  Men understand that they may be required to attend for longer than this - there is no sense in which 16 weeks is presented as a formula which will radically transform men.  It is explained that the Programme functions as a short, focused resource which equips men with some of the skills which they need to learn why they use violence and how and why they can stop.  The CHANGE Programme Perspective  CHANGE begins from the position 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.  Examples of this behaviour include controlling women's freedom through financial, emotional, sexual or physical coercion.  Women are expected to seek security through a stable relationship with one man, within which the man has traditionally been accorded certain rights to exercise control over the woman's behaviour (love, honour and obey), control which in the past has been substantiated by law.  Ultimately the wider responsibility for solving the problems of family violence lie 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.    Programme Content     Having made the point that men's use of violence is intentional the Programme begins its work with men by encouraging them to come to an understanding of how and why they have been using violence.  CHANGE defines violence as a range of physical, sexual, and psychological actions the purpose of which is getting and keeping control over others, intimidating them, requiring them to do something against their will, and punishing them.  Men will usually try to deny their violence or blame it on someone or something else such as alcohol or a sudden loss of control - a 'blind rage.' Sometimes they seem to be frightened and confused by the apparent mystery of this behaviour and want to understand it for themselves.  Breaking Down the Violent Incident  Men often express considerable remorse over their violence at this point in the group.  It is necessary to hear this, but it is also important to remember that men may often have expressed remorse in the past when pleading with partners to stay with them.  On these occasions they may have made promises they had no intention of keeping, or that they would simply be unable to keep particularly where they had no idea why their violence happened, where they saw it happening due to factors beyond their control or where they felt that something or someone else was to blame.  Over the course of several weeks the Programme breaks down various incidents where men have been violent and abusive including the incident which caused them to be charged.  Men come to see that in these incidents violence had the purpose of maintaining or re-establishing authority or of getting them what they wanted whether that be 'peace and quiet', a meal on the table, obedience or sex.  The violence is no longer 'mysterious' but purposeful.   Men are also made to look at the fact that their violence involves gains and losses.  The 'gains' are short term and concern the men’s power or supremacy in the relationship.  The losses are incurred at the expense of the gains however and are more long term.  According to most men these include the loss of love, trust and respect of partners and children, and the erosion of the men's own self respect.  It is often from these expressions of lack of self respect and trust in themselves that the work of the Programme goes forward.  Who is to Blame?  The men seek to excuse their unacceptable behaviour by blaming it on a variety of factors.  This may be drink, stress or the woman herself.  They are presented with the fact however that if they do not accept sole responsibility for their use of violence, their promises to themselves or to their partner that they will stop are null and void.  Men quite simply cannot refrain from behaviour for which they do not accept full responsibility.  Only by recognising and accepting that violence has been their choice can men refrain from further future violence, and no matter what friction or tensions may exist in the relationship which he may have used to justify his behaviour, it then becomes his responsibility to deal with these without resorting to violence.  Men are encouraged to come to an understanding of their past and continuing use of violence, the promises they have made and why these have been broken and the obstacles they place in their own path to prevent change in themselves.  In stating that men's violence is about power and control however it is necessary to work with men to make sense of the times when they see themselves needing to enforce this power and control.  This means challenging the attitudes, beliefs and expectations which they have about relationships and about women, but it also means being receptive to why men's view of themselves is either so rigid or so threatened that they may resort to the use of violence.  Responsibility for Self  It is an irony that men who seek to control the lives of others rely so much on the excuse that they are out of control themselves.  The Programme stresses the need for men to take more responsibility for their own lives, the difficulties which are present in their lives and how they need to deal with these difficulties whether this be stress, anger, alcohol abuse or jealousy.  In addressing these individual problems, the Programme is not pandering to men's excuses for their violence.  It is important, for example, in the case of jealousy to note that there are cultural overtones to jealousy as well as personal individual anxieties which make us jealous.  Both of these must be examined.  Where there is a recognition, however, that men are typically physically violent in situations where they have been drunk, or jealous, or where they have felt so out of control and fearful of this that they have struck out to violently re-assert their power and dominance, there is a real need to confront these as crisis issues which men must address as individuals in order to begin the process of making themselves safe people to live in the community. Paper 4       North Wales Probation Service                    John McKenna and Llew Owen Working with Violence in the Community  The North Wales Probation Service has been running groups for offenders with convictions for violence since 1987.  Such a group is one of many 'specialist' groups operating in the area.  The others are for sex offenders and problem drinkers.  There are also groups on assertiveness, women only groups and groups for drug users. North Wales does not run a specialist group work programme for domestic violence offenders though such offences and the issue of domestic violence has emerged within the 'violence' groups that currently operate. The groups operate over a block period, 3 or 4 days, and they are seen as an integral part of the supervision period, not separate to it.  Therefore, pre and post group discussions take place between referring Probation Officer and course leader so that the work begun can be continued from group to individual work.   In the group itself, early phases concentrate on desensitisation including ice-breaking material and video camera familiarisation.   Theoretically, the group work programme holds to a social learning perspective using much of the material that is currently available within the anger-management, cognitive behavioural tradition.  An important part of the programme is during the first phase, when group members are asked to think back to their earlier years and where and from whom they picked up (learnt) their attitudes, role models etc. regarding violent behaviour.  This would include an analysis of social stereo-typing in gender roles.   Experience has shown us that a variety of styles and inputs have tended to hold participants' concentration.  Therefore group discussion, course leader inputs, role playing and exercises all play their part in encouraging pro-social development.   Novaco's anger management principles are a focal point of the group sessions, and exercises have been developed which address the following: self esteem, learned responses, physical signs of arousal, relaxation techniques, self-instruction, the use of anger as a positive force, critical incident analysis and social skills training. Whilst no experience within North Wales exists of specialist provision for domestic violence offenders, we would suggest that much of what is integrated into a 'violence' programme as suggested above may well be suitably adapted to domestic violence offender groups. * A more detailed account of a group work approach to offenders with backgrounds of violence offences is available on request from the Probation Headquarters, Alexandra House, Abergele Road, Colwyn Bay, Clwyd.   Section 3 : Workshop Reports and Conference Feedbacks   CONFERENCE:            1.    Main points -      Discussion generated by conference/workshops was extremely useful -      Importance of having a conference atmosphere where differences of views could be aired, raising significant and vital new questions.  It's taken this conference to raise these questions for some. -      distribution of written material at start of conference as base for later discussion 2.    Anxieties expressed by some -      Anxieties about practitioners now working focussed on anger management believing this to be work focussed on domestic violence -      Anxieties about addressing responsibility issues and prioritising women's safety -      Concern that criticism, as well as approval, would be taken on board by practitioners and lead to reflective changes in due course -      Addressing the issue of who is given a platform for workshops in terms of looking at domestic violence - this has consequences for future networking and conferences   3.    Comments on conference organisation -      Special interest groups:  would have welcomed more clarity about possible aims and discussion, but useful to meet in smaller groups -      Funding:  recognition of problems for voluntary organisations.   In future could conference organisers consider a possible reduction in charges -      Welcoming/induction arrangements: would have liked an informal sitting room, especially in residences, and heating could have been better -      Some sharing of aims at start of conference, setting agenda, and acknowledging possible differences -      Better planning, selection and preparation of workshops  -      More time, or better organised time, for discussion in workshops  -      One organised, informal event + more supportive arrangements for residential participants -      Meals: lack of vegetarian alternatives WORKSHOPS:      1.    General -      ‘Thank you’ to workshop presenters 2.    Positives -      Fluid organisation -      Range of contacts: interagency -      Opportunity for learning new ideas -      Enthusiasm -      Further developments planned, e.g. practitioners’ meeting        in May. -      Positive impression of women and men co-facilitating men’s groups 2.    Criticisms -      Too big - felt more like training sessions -      Not enough time for questions -     Lack of written handouts                                  -      Exchange of knowledge/skills could have been better  -      A feeling that the workshops were rushed  -      Tension about how workshops were delivered and how participants perceived their needs, i.e. CHANGE workshop content and detail had been deemed extremely useful but felt like a lecture - there was a need for more participation  -      Lack of discussion on sexual violence - sexual violence raises issues for practitioners  -      Concern about all-male practising groups.  However, important to consider trusting men to work in this field.  Men have responsibility for themselves. Anxiety about non-involvement of women as facilitators  -      Differences between aims of workshops and participants' expectations  Issues raised about domestic violence and working with men 1.    General -      We need to acknowledge that we are at the beginning of a rocky road, but one with exciting possibilities -      Perceived need for getting support/allies within and outwith our particular workplaces 2.    Defining domestic violence -      Domestic violence also involves psychological/emotional abuse -      Importance of acknowledging use of sexual violence as way of control (sex being a reward, example of 'hearts and flowers' phase of abuse cycle) -      Need for a consensus on definition of domestic violence: should all agree domestic violence is a crime! 3.    Issues for women -      How can we ensure that women are not blamed for domestic violence? -      How can women trust men who are working with men? 4.    Issues for men's groups -      How can we stop men colluding with men? -      How can we know about the effectiveness of men's programmes? What is success? How do you measure it? -      Is asking for help success in itself? -      Concern about voluntary men's programmes over issues of funding, value base, decriminalisation of domestic violence, losing multi-agency approach, accountability and involving Women's Aid -      The funding issue: ensuring that violent men's programmes and support for women are funded appropriately -      The issue of funding depends on indication from men's programmes  that they are worth funding; that they work.  Obvious need therefore for ongoing evaluation -      We need to be able to acknowledge failure if programmes are not working -      We need to be aware of the pressure on workers to succeed -      We need to acknowledge some women's unhappiness with men's groups, e.g. the fear that men's groups will take funding away from women's groups -      Should women be involved in running men's groups? 5.    Wider social context -      There is encouraging evidence of a raising of consciousness of wider society but still a need for more gender education aimed at changing attitudes within the civil and criminal justice system and in social work and probation services -      The courts are not geared up to deal with the problem, and don't acknowledge the difficulty  for women giving evidence -      Need for legal profession to change -      Need for policy makers, police, legal profession and judiciary to attend all conferences.  Values  which should inform our work -      Safety of women paramount -      Safety of children paramount -      Women are not to blame for the violence - domestic violence must be criminalised -      Feminist analysis, i.e. domestic violence is about men wanting power and control -      Men are responsible for their violent actions -      Men can change Requirements for men's groups -      It is imperative that the philosophy underpinning the work is explicit -      They should challenge structure and power issues -      Well worked out programmes need to be the goal and evaluation/measured outcomes are essential -      Programmes require to be accountable -      They need to ensure supports are available to women and children -      Childcare facilities require to be linked to men's group -      There needs to be money to ensure that programmes for men are monitored by women with appropriate experience/expertise -      Men must take the onus of this work.  It is positive that some men have, but there is also a role for women to fulfil. Some thoughts on developing good practice over the issue of  domestic violence   -      To work with a multi-agency approach right from the start to ensure an accountable practice is developed -      To carry on dialogue to agree a philosophy -      To build trust between different organisations -      To develop strategies which enable organisations to move forward together -      To ensure inter-agency work recognises the importance of Women's Aid expertise and the need for financial support for services to women and children -      To develop common policy statements from women's and men's groups -      To develop non-hierarchical organisation, i.e. collective working practices -      To address equal opportunities issues, e.g. black women etc. -      To acknowledge differences between voluntary and statutory agencies -      To address the need for input into education acknowledging that role modelling starts young Proposals from small groups -      Feedback from this part of conference should be collated and distributed for the benefit of future conferences -      We need a central information bank so we can exchange ideas -      There should be more Police Domestic Violence Units -      Local networking towards national networks: monitoring of networks: national pressure group -      Investigate sponsorship for networking -      Network should work towards an agreed set of principles, e.g. participants MUST take on Women's Aid issues -      We should resolve to work jointly to tackle domestic violence, to get common aims and accountability Statements of intent -      I'm going to ensure resources for women go alongside resources for men -      I am going to get in touch with the women's officer to discuss a domestic violence forum -      I am going to our policy committee to inform them, and to our volunteer group to talk about setting up a men's group to run alongside the women's group -      I am going to organise a a training day on domestic violence -      This conference has been a good prop for me - I am going to a domestic violence round table next week - I am more aware of different perspectives -      I am going to take the issue back to the Domestic Violence Working Party - and wake them up! -      Arranging a local meeting with CHANGE to spark off debate -      I am going to keep COSLA Report and debate alive -      I am going to so-and-so's desk to find the papers on domestic violence so we can take the issue forward -      How about writing to Directors of Education and asking them what they will put in the curriculum? -      I am going to put energy into making a workshop in Keighley happen in May -      I am going to discuss the need for voluntary groups with CHANGE -      I am going to spread the word in Northern Ireland  -      I am going to raise the issue of domestic violence in prison groups and in community groups -      I am going to go home and worry and try to relax before Monday                  A charitable company limited by guarantee registered in Scotland No 183989             Scottish Charity No SCO18322          CHANGE acknowledges funding from the Scottish Executive