Domestic violence disclosure scheme

The government sought views on whether the protection available to victims of domestic violence could be enhanced by establishing a national disclosure scheme with recognised and consistent processes for the police to disclose information to potential victims. 

Following the consultation the government announced that a one-year pilot will take place from the summer of 2012 to test out a domestic violence disclosure scheme in the police force areas of Greater Manchester, Gwent, Nottinghamshire and Wiltshire. The pilot will test a process for enabling the police to disclose to the public information about previous violent offending by a new or existing partner where this may help protect them from further violent offending.

The pilot began on Monday 16 July 2012 in the Gwent and Wiltshire police force areas, with the Greater Manchester and Nottinghamshire police force areas joining the pilot by no later than 10 September 2012.

The government will consider the outcomes from the pilot very carefully before deciding on next steps. The government wants to ensure that the public has confidence that a clear framework exists with recognised and consistent processes for disclosing information that supports their needs.

The government has announced that a one-year pilot will take place from summer 2012 to test out a domestic violence disclosure scheme in four police force areas.

This impact assessment provides analysis and evidence of the three options for this consultation on whether to introduce a scheme for disclosing information about an individual’s history of domestic violence to a new partner.