Seyi writes…

Domestic and sexual violence affects approximately 1 in 4 women in the UK. The United Nations (UN) has designated 25th November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and is marking the occasion with 16 days of action.

As Deputy Chair of the Crime and Disorder Commission my first personal objective last year was for the commission to review Newham’s Domestic Violence service. Newham has the second highest volume of reported domestic violence in London, and 40.7% of all crimes in the borough are related to domestic violence. Since 2011, there have been six domestic violent homicides in Newham, the most in London.

We heard from the then lead member Cllr Ellie Robinson who gave us a fantastic overview of the Newham One Stop Shop service which is a service for residents who are experiencing domestic or sexual violence and need support. We also looked at preventive work taking place within in Forest Gate Community School in order to understand how safeguarding is tackled and how our young people are being taught about relationships. Forest Gate School in my opinion are leading in this area and we’d like them to share their best practice with other schools  We then looked at housing to get a better understanding of the options open to the Council when it becomes clear a tenant is being affected by domestic violence. Our review and recommendations report will be going to the next Newham Cabinet meeting for comments this Thursday, 5pm, East Ham Town Hall and will be publicly available shortly afterwards.

Newham One Stop Shop is a service for residents who are experience domestic or sexual violence and need support. If you or anyone you know needs support please call 08454512547