Independent Domestic Violence Advisory (IDVA) Services Tender
The Police and Crime Commissioner for North Wales Police is inviting tenders for the provision of Independent Domestic Violence Advisory (IDVA) Services across North Wales, under the Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015. The contract is categorised under counselling services (CPV code 85312320) and is part of the services procurement category. This procurement process, presently at the tender stage, covers multiple lots with services to be rendered in various regions including Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, and Wrexham. The tender submission deadline is set for 21 October 2024, with the contract period beginning on 1 April 2025 and running until 31 March 2029.
The process will follow an open procedure, allowing electronic and written submissions, and requires suppliers to meet specific economic and technical criteria outlined in the tender documents.
This tender provides significant opportunities for businesses specialising in advisory and counselling services, particularly those with experience in addressing domestic abuse, sexual violence, and gender-based violence. Suitable candidates include organisations capable of providing high-quality, needs-led, and responsive services that align with the co-productive and collaborative approach outlined by the North Wales Vulnerability and Exploitation Board. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with expertise in advisory services, resilience building, and support for victims of domestic violence will find this tender especially relevant for growth. The substantial funding, worth £2,143,710 GBP, and the potential to bid for up to four lots, present ample opportunities for establishing a strong presence in the public sector service provision landscape in North Wales.
Expression of Interest - Relationships and Sexual Education (RSE)
The VAWDASV regional team is seeking a partner to work independently to review the current support work for Relationships and Sexual Education (RSE).
The review will support the development of early intervention and prevention for children and young people services across North Wales.
The contractor will take an open approach to the service review development but would anticipate exploration of the current Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) support services, the views, and perspectives of key stakeholders regarding existing Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE), including experiences and what could be done differently to enhance RSE and explore with how best to implement and deliver RSE to children and young people across North Wales.
Closing date for applications is 01/11/2024
Scoring and evaluation panel will be held W/C: 04/11/2024
Notification of award W/C: 04/11/2024
Commissioned Services Data
The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner collates quarterly data from all commissioned services to demonstrate how they have performed and the outcomes they have achieved.
The documents below provides information on each commissioned service and how they have performed including the number of referrals received and number of clients supported;
2021-25 Independent Domestic Abuse Advisors / Independent Sexual Violence Funding
Following a successful expression of interest to the Ministry of Justice the Police and Crime Commissioner, has been successfully secured an £1,312,106 additional to support Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence providers for the next 2 years. This additional funding will support 11.6 IDVA posts and 4.8 ISVA posts across the region and will provide reassurance to services over the longer term to continue to support victims and survivors.
The specialist services were chosen by a commissioning panel to ensure there was a transparent process and extensive scrutiny.
The document below provides information on the grant awarded and what services have been commissioned. Grants are awarded at the start of the financial year;
Funding to support the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) North Wales
Following a successful expression of interest to the Ministry of Justice Rape Support Fund the Police and Crime Commissioner was successful in securing an additional £76,824.00 to fund a full time Independent Sexual Violence Advisor (ISVA) for the next 2 years. Since 2014 the North Wales PCC and more recently in partnership with the North Wales VAWDASV Board the Adult ISVA has been developed to provide a regional response across 6 counties supporting victims at a location convenient to their local area. This specialist tailored support to victims and survivors of sexual violence is based at the Amethyst Centre, in Colwyn Bay and is a multi –partnership between the Health Board, North Wales Police and Third Sector agencies. The aim of this service is to enable victims of sexual assaults to receive a seamless support service not conditional on a positive charging decision or dependent on the age of a victim, supporting them to cope and recover from such devastating crimes.
This support will enable the SARC to work on clearing existing caseloads which have increased due to demands with courts closing and a number of clients with severe mental health issues due to the impact of COV 19. It will also provide increased resilience to the team during this pandemic. The work that is provided by this service will ensure victims are supported before, during and after criminal and civil court proceedings and ensuring that the victims’ rights are met.
Ministry of Justice Covid - 19 Extraordinary Funding
In partnership with the Ministry of Justice, the North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner is pleased to announce that £238,000 has been allocated to 7 specialist services across North Wales to help support victims of Sexual Violence and Domestic Abuse during COVID 19.
The 7 successful services have adapted their provision in line with the government guidelines and ensured that they continue to deliver support to victims of domestic and sexual abuse. This additional funding recognises those efforts and will provides reassurance to services over the longer term to continue to support victims and survivors.
The specialist services were chosen by a commissioning panel including representatives from VAWDASV, Supporting People and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner to ensure there was a transparent process and extensive scrutiny. The successful applicants will receive a contribution towards the delivery of services from the 24th March to 31st October 2020.
The funding allocation was part of an overall £25 million Covid – 19 extraordinary funding package from the Home Office to support charities across England and Wales who help vulnerable people including victims of Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence during the pandemic.
The document below provides information on the grant awarded and what services have been commissioned. Grants are awarded at the start of the financial year; all payments made can be viewed here.
All organisations VAWDASV awarded grants are provided the same Grant terms and conditions.
Violence Against Women Domestic Abuse Sexual Violence (VAWDASV)
Following a proposal at the North Wales Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse, Sexual Violence (VAWDASV) Board it was agreed the North Wales Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner would be the accountable body (Regional Banker) for the Welsh Government VAWDASV Grant. The VAWDASV grant was previously paid directly to Local Authorities and it has been amalgamated into one pot to protect IDVA,ISVA, CSA and perpetrator programmes across the six local authorities.
The document below provides information on the grant awarded during 2020/21 and what services have been commissioned. Grants are awarded at the start of the financial year; all payments made can be viewed here.
During 20/21 the VAWDASV provided further Emergency COVID 19 Funding to support victims of Domestic and Sexual Abuse. The additional funding supported disbursed units and additional activities within refuges during COVID19. The additional funding has also supported some of our current funded services to support counsellors with regards to enabling them to have IT facilities in order to deliver counselling services remotely.
The document below provides information on the grant awarded during 2020/21 and what services have been commissioned. Grants are awarded at the start of the financial year; all payments made can be viewed here.
In addition, funding has been secured from VAWDASV to support training needs across the region. The below document provides information on the grant awarded and the services commissioned.
All organisations VAWDASV awarded grants are provided the same Grant terms and conditions.
Prevention in Focus
Prevention In Focus includes submissions from 15 cross-party PCCs who are making a real difference through their leadership, commissioning and partnership work. Innovative projects include working with women offenders; an award-winning Community Peer Mentor Service; a Safe Schools and Communities Team project; a Young Victims of Crime Service; Adverse Childhood Experiences projects; as well as various Sport-based intervention schemes.
For information on how the Police and Crime Commissioner in North Wales has made a difference, click here.
Grants awarded for the reduction of Crime and Disorder
The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 enables the Commissioner to award grants to partners, public organisations or voluntary groups that can support the community safety priorities identified in his Police and Crime Plan. The Commissioning Framework explains the Commissioner's objectives and overall vision of the commissioning service.
The documents below provides information on the grants awarded in the last three financial years and what services have been commissioned. Grants are awarded at the start of the financial year, all payments made can be viewed here.
All organisations awarded grants for the reduction of crime and disorder are provided with the same Grant terms and conditions.
Grants awarded for services to support Victims
The Police Reform & Social Responsibility Act 2011 further charges the Commissioner to commission local services to help victims, or witnesses of, or other persons affected by, criminal offences and anti-social behaviour.
A Needs Assessment for the development of Victim Services in North Wales was carried out to aid the Commissioner's decision.
All organisations awarded grants for the support of victims are provided with the same Grant Terms and Conditions
Hate Crime Awareness Grant
The Police and Crime Commissioner receives a grant from Welsh Government to be spend on Hate Crime Awareness Week, see below how the money was spent in North Wales.
Your Community, Your Choice (Participatory Budgeting)
"Your Community, Your Choice" is one of the Commissioner's initiatives to return money seized from offenders back to the community.
Money recovered through the Proceeds of Crime Act and from the Police and Crime Commissioner is donated to community projects in North Wales.
Your Community, Your Choice is also supported by PACT (Police and Community Trust), North Wales.
Social Value
North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner (and North Wales Police) hopes that embedding Social Value into our commissioning and procurement processes will bring significant benefit to North Wales and its residents by delivering a social return, wherever possible, on every pound we spend.