Council support for domestic abuse services
The Highland Council has reiterated its commitment to supporting and strengthening support services for all victim-survivors of domestic abuse across the Highlands.
In response to recent media reports, and concerns raised directly with elected members, the Council would like to clarify the following for victim-survivors:
Refuge accommodation: The Council has not reduced funding for refuge accommodation for women. The Council has committed to carrying out a review of housing solutions for victim-survivors of domestic abuse. This review is at the early scoping stage and is focussed on improving services. Women only spaces will continue to be available. There will be no change to refuge accommodation, or contracts with existing providers, until this review is complete. This has been communicated to two current providers, who are Ross-shire and Inverness Women’s Aid. Emergency accommodation is, and will continue to be, available to people in Highland when they need it.
Domestic abuse outreach services: The Council’s existing contract for domestic abuse outreach services runs until March 2026. It is currently provided by four Women’s Aid organisations in Highland – Inverness, Ross-shire, Lochaber, Caithness and Sutherland. A procurement exercise is underway to find service providers to jointly deliver domestic outreach services for all victim-survivors of domestic abuse, irrespective of sex or gender identity, under the umbrella of a Highland-wide Domestic Abuse Service. This will lead to improvements in terms of equity, access and support, while providing providers with certainty around funding for up to five years.
As part of this exercise, the Council has benchmarked how much it spends on domestic abuse outreach services against other local authorities, while considering the service needs across all of Highland and the unique challenges of delivering a service in rural communities. The details of this procurement exercise are subject to commercial confidentiality, and we cannot provide further information until this exercise concludes.
Non contracted discretionary funding: In addition to funding the domestic outreach service and refuge accommodation, the Council also supports Women’s Aid organisations with discretionary funding to access Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) related services, which enable data sharing between organisations and co-ordinated action plans. This funding is currently under review, but no notice has been given that it will cease.
Cllr David Fraser, Chair of the Health, Social Care and Wellbeing Committee, said: “I want to reassure victim-survivors of domestic abuse that support is, and will continue to be, available to them in Highland when they need it. Our Highland-wide Domestic Abuse Outreach service will lead to improved support for all victim-survivors, irrespective of where they live in Highland.”
The Council continues to be in regular discussion with Women’s Aid organisations throughout Highland.