Peterborough charity claims 'tide is changing' in fight against domestic abuse
It's delivering a new service that's seen a rise in referrals
A Peterborough charity believes more victims of domestic abuse are now more willing to tell police what they've gone through.
Darryl Preston - Cambridgeshire and Peterborough's police and crime commissioner (PCC) - has given funding towards a new countywide service which aims to give victims and survivors of domestic abuse a chance to get early help.
Delivered by Peterborough Women's Aid (PWA), specialist domestic abuse practitioners, embedded within the PCC-funded Victim and Witness Hub, contact victims and survivors within 72 hours of receiving a referral.
"In quarter one of the new contract (compared to April-June 2025), our referrals have increased by 18% so that tells us more people are reporting to police, which is good," Mandy Geraghty, chief executive officer at PWA, said.
"It means the tide might be changing in terms of victims feeling more confident in the police to keep them safe."
More referrals
The commissioned service builds on a 12-month pilot by PWA, when 1,500 referrals were received and 1,182 victims and survivors were supported.
During the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year, the new service received 468 police referrals and supported 382 individuals.
While the office for the PCC said every eligible victim and survivor referred to the service was contacted within the 72-hour target.
Practitioners make up to three attempts to establish contact, offer support, undertake further risk assessment where appropriate and help people access additional or longer-term support based on their needs and circumstances.
Since April, the commissioned service has introduced extended opening hours, the option for individuals to arrange contact at a more suitable time and access to video-based support where appropriate.
"You would hope people are hearing about projects like this and thinking if I do go to the police, not only might the perpetrator be arrested but if I do that, I then get support myself'," Mandy said.
"Previously, services have been divided up but now we have this continuity and we know that every victim deemed as medium risk will receive the same level of support."
Prevention
Mr Preston hopes that the service can ensure victims get help to rebuild their lives, while strengthening specialist support for survivors of domestic abuse across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
"These appalling crimes leave long-lasting emotional and psychological scars, and we must not miss any opportunity to save lives and promote healing," he said.
“The model’s success is evidenced by the sheer volume of victims supported over the initial year of delivery; there is no doubt that this service is urgently needed and valued."
The service builds on a £300,000 government grant secured by the PCC's office spread across two years for people in different parts of Cambridgeshire to get specialist help, such as wellbeing walks and drop-in sessions.
Mandy hopes the service will help victims move forward rather than return for help.
"The whole point of this project is prevention in terms of not having any repeat victims that we do that intervention quickly and they get that support, make decisions or we can support them with those so they're in a healthier place," she added.