Decision details

Cllr Stephan Fifield sought Cabinet approval to allocate the remaining unallocated Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities (DLUHC) Domestic Abuse section 31 grant funding for 2021/22 – 2024/25 of £1.286m (the “Domestic Abuse Grant”) for the purpose of enabling the council to meet its statutory duties under part 4 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

Having considered all of the information, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to:

1. Approve the allocation of up to £1,274,500 from the council’s Domestic Abuse Grant for the delivery of support in domestic abuse safe accommodation and to contribute towards the associated administrative burdens in meeting the council’s duties under part 4 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. Recommendations 2-7 below set out the use of this funding.

2. Approve the allocation of £366,000 (£122,000 per annum) from the Domestic Abuse Grant for the purpose of funding the cost of the contract described in Recommendation 3.

3. Approve the direct award of a three year contract (commencing 1 April 2025) to Stroud Beresford Group for the provision of support for adult and child victims of domestic abuse in refuge accommodation using the resources described in Recommendation 2.

4. Delegates authority to the Director of Public Health, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care Delivery to:

(a) allocate £336,000 from the Domestic Abuse Grant for the purpose of funding the call-off contract described in Recommendation 4(b); and (b) award a Call-Off Contract for the supply of Support in Safe Accommodation to the sole appointed supplier under Lot B of the council’s proposed Gloucestershire Domestic Abuse Support Service (GDASS) Single Provider Framework Agreement (which shall be the subject of a separate Cabinet Decision also schedule for 24 July 2024) using the resources described in Recommendation 4(a). The proposed Call-Off Contract shall continue for a period of one year.

5. Delegate authority to the Director of Public Health in consultation with the Lead Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care Delivery to allocate a maximum of £342,500 on the basis set out in Recommendations 5 (a) to (c) via Gloucester City Council (as the host local authority for the Housing Partnership Team which acts on behalf of the District and County Councils, the Gloucestershire Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) and the Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (ICB)) to be used at district level for funding the following activities:

(a) £190,000 for the purpose of funding the provision of domestic abuse support in a pilot Respite Rooms scheme over a maximum period of three years (see paragraphs 18-19 of this report for background details of the proposed scheme). The amount proposed is indicative at this stage as it will be determined by the Director of Public Health based on the agreed delivery model and length of the proposed Respite Rooms pilot scheme.

(b) £125,000 for the purpose of providing funding, during a two year period commencing from the date of transfer of such funding to contribute towards the administration costs incurred by whichever two of Cheltenham Borough Council, Cotswold District Council, Forest of Dean District Council, Gloucester City Council, Stroud District Council and Tewkesbury Borough Council are selected by the Gloucestershire Housing Partnership to carry out the system and policy work that is needed for completing tranche one of the Domestic Abuse Housing Alliance (DAHA) accreditation for district council Housing Services described in paragraph 25 of this report. The amount is indicative at this stage as it is subject to the council receiving confirmation from the selected local authorities of their estimated staffing costs.

(c) £27,500 for the purposes of continuing to fund the appointment of two countywide Domestic Abuse Intervention Officers (DAIOs) who will work across all the district councils in Gloucestershire during the period 1 April 2025 to 30 June 2025. The amount is indicative at this stage because the relevant local authorities will need to confirm the pro-rata staffing costs for the period above.

6. Delegate authority to the Executive Director of Children’s Services to:

(a) allocate £200,000 from the Domestic Abuse Grant for the purpose of funding the cost of the call-off contracts described in Recommendation 6(b);

(b) procure and award, subject to the financial limit set out in Recommendation 6(a) above, over a period of up to two years expiring 1 September 2027, as many call-off contracts under the council’s Access to Resources Framework Agreement as may be required for the provision of trauma recovery therapeutic support services for children and young people accessing domestic abuse safe accommodation.

7. Delegate authority to the Director of Public Health in consultation with the Lead Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care Delivery to allocate up to £30,000 from the Domestic Abuse Grant for the purposes of contributing to Gloucestershire County Council’s administrative costs during the period 1 April 2025 to 30 June 2025 in meeting its statutory duties under part 4 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. The amount is indicative at this stage as the council and the OPCC (as host for the joint funded roles described in paragraph 47 of this report) will need to agree the prorate staffing costs for such roles during the period.