CHANGING THE CULTURE | Page 95

ANNEXE E: UNIVERSITY CASE STUDIES CASE STUDY 1: SOUTH WALES UNIVERSITIES: RECOGNISING AND RESPONDING TO DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL ABUSE This project is a collaboration between the South Wales Police crime commissioner, the Ministry of Justice, Atal Y Fro (domestic violence services) and universities in south Wales, Cardiff University being the lead. The project aims to establish a range of joined-up services across university campuses in south Wales, recognising and responding to domestic and sexual violence. Over the past three years, awareness-raising in this area has highlighted a significant increase in the levels of domestic and sexual violence experienced by 16 to 24-year-olds, including the level of vulnerability that students can feel within universities, particularly in relation to sexual assaults. Core principles of the project  Domestic abuse and sexual assault training for all identified staff, with tiered training dependent upon the job role within the educational institution  Identification of domestic abuse ‘champions’ from among both the academic and pastoral staff to provide leadership and cultural change  Training student counsellors to recognise and respond to suspected or disclosed domestic abuse; this includes raising awareness of indicators and providing skills to respond effectively and refer to specialists  Training security staff to identify increased vulnerability and to recognise and positively respond to issues relating to disclosures of domestic abuse and sexual assault  Developing links with relevant specialist agencies  Providing of advocacy, support and referral to specialist agencies  Providing a clear pathway to a single point of contact Outcomes The following have been shared with the Ministry of Justice as indicative outcomes:  Increased awareness within tutors and support staff of domestic abuse and its indicators  An increase in targeting and asking students if they have any concerns about domestic abuse or sexual assault  Increased referrals to counselling university support services  Increased confidence to report incidents to the police and a subsequent rise in reporting of incidents (domestic violence/sexual assaults)  Increased referrals to specialist agencies for ongoing support and advocacy 94