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The
Equality and Diversity Unit of Birmingham City
Council sponsored this year’s regional seminar, with
the kind co-operation of Dr Mashuq Ally, including a
truly excellent lunch. Held in the
impressive Banqueting Suite of Birmingham City
Council House, the seminar was opened by
Peter Hay, Strategic Director of Adults and Communities and Chair of
Violence and Vulnerability within the Council.
Three
aspects of violence were the focus for this meeting
and these were dealt with initially by three
distinguished policemen.
The first was
Detective
Constable Andrew Richards who for the last seven
years has worked on crimes perpetrated through means
of the internet.
He shared with us details of the work being
done for child protection, especially online, and
the training given to police officers.
Chief Superintendent Steve Glover,
who is the Representative on Trafficking for the
Association of Police Officers, gave a very succinct
and informative talk on the situation of trafficking
in women, both in this area and nationally.
Women who have been rescued from appalling
situations are so conditioned by their experiences
that they often go back to the same way of life.
How best to help rescued women is a problem
which needs addressing.
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Detective Chief Inspector Chris Johnson,
is the Crime Manager for West Midlands Police at
Kings Heath and is also the lead for Adult
Safeguarding Arrangements in Birmingham.
He said that we have to realise that elder
abuse is unacceptable.
Abuse can be physical, sexual, psychological,
financial, or caused by omission;
all of which can lead to harm to the
individual.
Our
final speaker was a lawyer,
David Tatlow,
LLM, who is the Assistant Director of Legal and
Democratic Services.
Within the framework of the Birmingham
Community Partnership there is now a pioneering
service, using the Civil Justice system against
perpetrators of domestic violence.
He gave a clear picture of the limited
success of the Criminal Justice system and of the
lead role played by Birmingham’s Community Safety
Partnership in addressing the concerns of women
affected and securing much more satisfactory
outcomes than in the past, resulting in no hiding
place for perpetrators.
Arising from the panel
discussion at the end of the seminar, a number of
excellent suggestions were made by the speakers,
which it was hoped NCW
would take up.
These were:-
·
the provision of funding to provide research into elder abuse
·
the establishment of properly staffed refuges for trafficked women
·
the development of more partnerships, such as that pioneered by
the Birmingham Community Partnership, involving the
use of
the
Civil Justice System alongside the Criminal Justice
system.
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