Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) programmes and (b) interventions are used to reduce reoffending among domestic abusers in the community; and what the reoffending rates are among people who participate.

HM Prison and Probation Service currently offers five Accredited Programmes that may be undertaken by those convicted of domestic abuse offences. These are the Building Better Relationships programme, Becoming New Me +, New Me Strengths, Building Choices (available in prisons and probation), and Kaizen (available in prisons only). These programmes may also be undertaken by offenders with a range of offending types, however, so it is not possible to provide re-offending outcomes specifically in relation to domestic abusers.

Accredited Programmes more generally are well-evidenced. Most international reviews indicate that programmes reduce reoffending generally by about 20% to 30%.

In addition to Accredited Programmes, a number of approved interventions are also delivered by HMPPS and other partners, including Third Sector organisations. The National Framework for Interventions Policy Framework - GOV.UK sets out the minimum design standards for these types of interventions.

Structured Interventions are available as a sentence of the court, by inclusion in a Rehabilitation Activity Requirement. They are part of a set of interventions delivered by regional interventions teams in the community. Those which focus specifically on domestic abuse include Stepwise Relationships, Positive Pathways Plus, Help, and Developing Assertiveness for Women in Relationships.