PERPETRATORS of domestic abuse will be able to access a rebranded programme delivered by Jersey Probation and Aftercare Service – which is expected to accept people who refer themselves.
The Building Healthy Relationships programme will replace the Jersey Domestic Abuse Programme in the next six weeks.
The new name was borne out of feedback from clients on JDAP, said Kay McCarthy, assistant probation officer with responsibility for co-ordinating the programme.
“We did a piece of research and one of the clients came up with a ‘Building Healthy Relationships’ programme, which sounds a lot healthier and sounds a lot less stigmatising.”
Clients have always come to the service through the courts or through support agencies – but a new option allows people to self-refer if they think they might need the support.
Building Healthy Relationships comprises eight modules, starting with initial assessments and covering topics ranging from the impact of domestic abuse on children to trauma and anger.
These are personalised and delivered mostly on a one-on-one basis, and the full programme takes around nine months to deliver.
“It’s about adapting the programme to suit their own capability or the way they learn,” Ms McCarthy said.
“It’s about looking at the need and adapting those things to ensure that there’s an understanding.”
Natalie Elliott, team manager at the probation service, added: “We had an example of somebody who was going through a diagnosis of autism, very high-functioning, but in a group setting [it was] very difficult to adapt that for them.”
Safeguarding is central to the programme, Ms McCarthy said, and probation officers are in contact with other agencies throughout the process – including the Jersey Domestic Abuse Service, Victim Support and the States police.
When someone comes into the service, they are assessed to find out if they are even suitable for the programme – as alcohol or drugs issues, for example, can be an obstacle and have to be handled first.
The probation service has also made efforts to include women and LGBTQ+ people to its domestic-violence programme. Before Adapt was phased out in early 2021, the service only accepted men – but is now seeing a more diverse cohort, with a client who is in a same-sex relationship and a woman both undertaking the course.
