Recurring concern
Failure to reliably recognise and assess domestic abuse risks
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Request correctionFirst reported 30 Oct 2013•Latest report 19 Sep 2025
What this concern includes
Includes failures in domestic-abuse policies, flowcharts and operational risk-assessment arrangements to identify, understand or assess material abuse risks and risk factors, including non-fatal strangulation, cultural risk, coercive control and other indicators, where the deficiency affects safeguarding or protective action.
Not included
- Excludes the existing DASH-specific risk-assessment process when the assertion is confined to DASH forms, training or operation.
- Excludes general domestic-abuse investigation, victim support or protective-order failures where risk recognition or assessment is not the unsafe condition.
- Excludes generic police or healthcare training, communication or information-sharing deficiencies without a direct domestic-abuse risk-assessment connection.
- Excludes isolated domestic-abuse incidents or outcomes where no continuing deficiency in risk recognition or assessment is asserted.
- Reports
- 12
- Individual concerns
- 17
- Date range
- 2013–2025
- Stated actions
- 30
Distinct published reports
A report can raise multiple concerns
First to latest report issue date
Described in published responses
Reports over time
Reports over time
Reports about this concern issued each year.
* 2026 is projected from reports observed to 7 Sep 2026.
Most frequent recipients
Most frequent recipients
Reports about this concern sent to each recipient.
Concerns and responses across reports
Only concerns grouped under this recurring concern are included. Select any concern, action or position to view the source wording.
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Concerns raised1
Failure to consider domestic abuse risk at police dismissal
This report raised 1 other concern. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.3
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Action
Update and strengthen safeguarding procedures.
Stated by Independent Office for Police Conduct -
Action
Review whether guidance needs additional content on risk assessments for spouses and intimate partners.
Stated by Independent Office for Police Conduct -
Action
Operate the Integrity Assurance Unit to risk-assess personnel with adverse judicial findings or adverse information and impose risk-management measures where necessary.
Stated by Metropolitan Police Service
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.1
-
Position
No specific risk to Rebekah was apparent because no domestic abuse allegations or concerning evidence had been reported to or identified by the IOPC.
Stated by Independent Office for Police Conduct
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Concerns raised1
Non-adoption of the new domestic abuse risk-assessment tool
This report raised 2 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.3
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Action
Explore an interim solution for incorporating DARA questions and the serious-harm definition into the current crime-recording system.
Stated by Thames Valley Police -
Action
Develop, pilot and evaluate the DARA risk-assessment tool and aligned training for identifying coercive-control patterns.
Stated by National Police Chiefs’ Council -
Action
Work with police forces and relevant IT providers to drive implementation of the nationally launched DARA risk-assessment process.
Stated by National Police Chiefs’ Council
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.3
-
Position
Competing financial priorities are not the reason DARA has not been adopted; compatibility and training challenges are the principal barriers.
Stated by Thames Valley Police
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Position
DARA cannot currently be implemented because of NICHE compatibility, contractor, training and partner-agency integration challenges.
Stated by Thames Valley Police -
Position
DARA implementation was delayed by competing demands to amend police IT systems, limiting the speed of national implementation.
Stated by National Police Chiefs’ Council
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Concerns raised2
Failure to recognise the additional vulnerability arising from physical health and dependence on a perpetrator for care
Failure to recognise coercive and controlling relationship behaviours and their impact on victims’ mental health
This report raised 2 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
No linked response statementsNo respondent-stated action or position is linked to these concerns in the published data.
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Concerns raised1
Failure of processes and policies to recognise the link between domestic abuse and suicide
This report raised 10 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.5
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Action
Continue funding the Domestic Homicide and Suspected Victim Suicides Project.
Stated by Home Office -
Action
Update police suicide guidance to reference domestic abuse and prompt consideration of domestic abuse in unexplained deaths and suspected suicides.
Stated by Home Office -
Action
Strengthen statutory guidance for Domestic Homicide Reviews involving suicide to clarify referral criteria and review processes.
Stated by Home Office
-
Action
Work with the Home Office to implement the Tackling Domestic Abuse Plan.
Stated by Department of Health and Social Care -
Action
Work with suicide prevention partners to consider suicide-linked factors and actions for the national suicide prevention strategy.
Stated by Department of Health and Social Care
-
Concerns raised1
Lack of accessible cultural risk information for domestic abuse risk assessment
This report raised 5 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
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Action
Provide domestic abuse knowledge products covering victim-focused risk assessment, vulnerability, cultural competence, coercive control and Honour Based Abuse.
Stated by College of Policing and National Police Chiefs’ Council
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.2
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Position
There is no evidence that nationality or cultural background predicts involvement in domestic abuse or domestic homicide, and international rates are unreliable.
Stated by College of Policing and National Police Chiefs’ Council
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Position
Existing policies, guidance, professional curiosity, cultural competence and individualised risk assessment are considered sufficient; a nationality-based risk database is not supported.
Stated by College of Policing and National Police Chiefs’ Council
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Concerns raised1
Inconsistent definitions and thresholds for serious or serial domestic abuse perpetrators
This report raised 21 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.4
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Action
Highlight the disparity between police and CPS serial-perpetrator definitions to the national policy team for further consideration.
Stated by CPS North West -
Action
Revise the domestic abuse policy to define and govern application of the serial domestic abuse perpetrator marker.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police -
Action
Share guidance with safeguarding officers and staff on correctly applying the serial domestic abuse perpetrator marker.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police
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Action
Explore automation of domestic abuse information markers and improve staff understanding of when and how markers should be applied.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.1
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Position
Other named respondents are responsible for addressing the coroner’s concerns; this response covers only broader learning-sharing issues within its remit.
Stated by NHS Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board
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Concerns raised1
Failure to recognise the perpetrator’s suicide risk as a significant domestic abuse risk factor for the victim
This report raised 3 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.2
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Action
Pilot and evaluate approaches for identifying and tackling high-risk offenders, including adding suicide indicators to potential risk indicators.
Stated by Home Office -
Action
Review domestic homicide review findings and academic research to improve identification of characteristics and risk factors for domestic homicides.
Stated by Home Office
-
Concerns raised1
Failure to allocate an appropriately protective MAPPA level for offenders with significant domestic abuse histories who have not been fully tested before release
This report raised 10 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.1
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Action
Implement a Pan-Lancashire MARAC protocol requiring immediate emergency referral and high-risk prioritisation for relevant life-licensed domestic-abuse homicide offenders.
Stated by Lancashire Constabulary
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Concerns raised4
Absence of non-fatal strangulation from the Domestic Abuse Policy
Failure of police officers to recognise non-fatal strangulation as a domestic homicide risk factor
Failure of police officers to understand and apply the Domestic Abuse Policy
Inadequate and non-dynamic domestic abuse risk assessment
This report raised 5 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.4
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Action
Update the Domestic Abuse Policy to address non-fatal strangulation, public protection and iOPS changes.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police -
Action
Provide non-fatal-strangulation awareness training across frontline, student-officer and specialist adult-abuse investigator courses.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police -
Action
Deliver domestic-abuse terminology training through student-officer, consolidation and Safeguarding for Constables courses.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police
-
Action
Provide training on DVDS, risk identification, DASH, RARA, risk levels and MARAC processes.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police
Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.1
-
Position
The Domestic Abuse Policy cannot be rewritten until related structural, procedural and information-technology changes are embedded.
Stated by Greater Manchester Police
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Concerns raised2
Lack of a domestic-abuse-specific questionnaire
Failure of the domestic abuse response flowchart to provide clear abuse-specific risk assessment
This report raised 1 other concern. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concernsEach statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.3
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Action
Incorporate a DASH-based domestic abuse questionnaire and assessment into the practice protocol.
Stated by OLD CATTRON MEDICAL PRACTICE -
Action
Use the DASH scoring system to support timely escalation to other agencies.
Stated by OLD CATTRON MEDICAL PRACTICE -
Action
Update and improve the domestic abuse flowchart within the practice protocol.
Stated by OLD CATTRON MEDICAL PRACTICE
Data last updated 7 September 2026