Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of the (a) availability and (b) adequacy of support services for children and young people experiencing domestic violence.

The Government is committed to ensure that sufficient support is available for children who experience domestic abuse.

A joint Ofsted, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services and Care Quality Commission inspection into the impact of domestic abuse on children published last year, identified that whilst progress had been made, agencies’ response still needed to improve.

The Government is committed to acting on the recommendations and announced on 8 March that it is making £8 million of funding available which will be targeted towards services supporting children who witness domestic abuse.

The Government also published a consultation on 8 March on how we can transform our approach to domestic abuse. The consultation, which explicitly seeks views on further steps to address the impact of domestic abuse on children, will help to inform further action to support children and young people.