Domestic violence court piloted in city

A SPECIALIST domestic violence court - based on a working model in operation in Glasgow but the first of its kind in Northern Ireland - is currently being piloted in Londonderry, the Stormont Justice Committee has been told.

Mrs Orla Conway of the Northern Ireland Women’s Aid Federation revealed the pioneering move in a submission to the Committee on the ‘Criminal Justice Services available to Victims and Witnesses of Crime in Northern Ireland.’

She said: “There are still a lot of gaps in services for victims. There are things that we would like to happen that would improve the experience of women and children who are victims of domestic crimes. We would like to see the development of specialist domestic violence courts.

“That model operates in Glasgow, and members of Northern Ireland’s regional steering group on domestic violence recently travelled to Glasgow to see how it works.”

Mrs Conway said her colleague Marie Brown of Foyle Women’s Aid - also in attendance at the evidence session - was key in implementing the pilot.

Said Mrs Conway: “A pilot of a domestic violence court is operating in Derry; my colleague Marie pushed very hard for it. That court is now up and running with - it has to be said - very little input from the lead agency that provides services to women and children in this area. We would like to see a roll-out of domestic violence courts, perhaps similar to the Glasgow model.”

Mrs Brown later told the Committee that Foyle Women’s Aid wanted “fully integrated domestic violence courts.”

She also commented: “There also needs to be other provisions and support such as childcare, and witnesses must be prepared for the ordeal of going to court.

“To pick up on a comment that was made, we know that court will never be easy for victims, but a lack of communication and a lack of knowledge about what is going on and what the outcomes may be really stresses witnesses out.

“Many victims are left standing in court for an hour after their case has been heard, with no one telling them anything. Dealing with those things could really reduce stress levels for victims.

“Those are create stress for the women that we have, as is knowing whether you have adequate childcare provision if you have to be in court all day and will not be about to look after your child. Therefore, we want to see a willingness to establish the domestic violence-specific court.”