Issue - meetings

Report of the Cabinet Member for Communities and Inclusion attached.

Councillor Walmsley, Cabinet Member for Communities and Inclusion presented the report which outlined the Bury Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation Strategy, procurement exercise to secure Safe Accommodation provision and extend the existing Domestic Abuse safe accommodation provision and core IDVA contracts.

Decision:

The Cabinet:

1. Approved the Bury Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation Strategy.
2. Approved an open competitive procurement exercise to secure Safe Accommodation provision for the period of 1st November 2025 to 31st March 2028, with the option at the discretion of the Council to extend for a further year. 2.3 Approve an open competitive procurement exercise to secure core victim support (IDVA/ support workers) provision from 1st November 2025 to 31st March 2028, with the option at the discretion of the Council to extend for a further year.
3. Extend the existing Domestic Abuse safe accommodation provision and core IDVA contracts, utilising existing budgets, to cover the period November 2024 to end of October 2025 to maintain provision during approval of strategy and tender exercise set out in 2.2 and 2.3 at a value of £380k and £131K respectively.

Reason for the decision:

The strategy delivers on a statutory requirement within the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 to develop such an approach focusing on safe accommodation and the means by which to deliver on this.

The strategy outlines a proposed evolution of the approach to safe accommodation, reflecting input from those of lived experience and system partners, informing a revised set of commissioning intentions; whilst ensuring provision maintained whilst such procurement activity takes place.

Other options considered and rejected:

Enabling the provision of safe accommodation support is a requirement under the Duty, as is the development of a strategy to outline the approach to such accommodation. The strategy provides the means to inform the commissioning of provision that can best meet local needs and circumstances.

To not update develop such an approach would fail to capitalise on the journey made in recent years but more importantly miss the opportunity to further tailor and target the focus of such support provision.