Domestic Violence Safety Assessment Tool

Welcome and thank you for joining us for a webinar on the new Support Services DVSAT. My name is Carolyn Cousins and I have been involved in developing the support materials for this DVSAT in consultation staff in the sector

We know many people have been eagerly anticipating the new tool, and we’re really pleased to be able to introduce it you.

To begin this session, the Department of Communities and Justice would like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the many lands where we work and live, and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people watching this webinar.

We celebrate the diversity of Aboriginal peoples and their ongoing cultures and connections to the lands and waters of what is now known as NSW. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.

We also acknowledge the Aboriginal people in the domestic and family violence workforce who work in and out of community every day to provide support to those impacted by this epidemic.

We recognise that Aboriginal peoples, organisations and communities have shared their wisdom, knowledge, experiences and expertise that contributed to the development of the Support Services DVSAT and this training material. 

We would also like to acknowledge those with lived and living experience of domestic and family violence, and those who have sadly lost their lives due to violence.  

We recognise the valuable expertise and insights of victim-survivors, shared so generously, which helps to shape our priorities and reforms, and strengthen our service systems.

Before we begin, I want to touch on language. Throughout the webinar, we’ll use the term victim-survivor to refer to someone who has experienced domestic, family or sexual violence to acknowledge their strength, resilience, and resistance.

We also will use the term ‘person using violence’ or ‘perpetrator’ to describe individuals who have perpetrated physical, sexual, emotional, psychological and/or economic abuse, as well as coercion and control within an intimate, family or other domestic relationship. We recognise that other terms are also used in the sector. In our client work, it’s important that we’re guided by the language used by our clients.

On your screen, you will see the topics we’ll cover in this webinar, which has been designed for workers with specialist knowledge who want to learn more about the new tool and how to incorporate it into their practice, across a range of service settings.

Firstly, we’ll touch on why the DVSAT has changed and what exactly has been developed. We’ll then step through each part of the new tool. We’ll cover off who the tool can be used with, as this is an important change to the DVSAT you may be familiar with, when to complete the tool and what to do if there are multiple perpetrators.

In the second section of this webinar, we’ll look at some practice guidance and tips for completing the DVSAT alongside victim-survivors.

The information we cover today is available in the new Support Services DVSAT Guide and other practice support materials. At the end of the webinar, we’ll look briefly at the suite of supporting materials, so if you’d like further information on any of the topics we cover, be sure to check those out.

On a side note, if you’re part of a Safer Pathway support service, like the Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Services and the Local Support Services, you will have already received training on the new Support Services DVSAT, however you are more than welcome to continue watching this webinar, use it as a refresher and refer back to it whenever you need.

Let’s start with Section 1 and get a good look at the new tool.

The previous DVSAT, which you will be familiar with, was developed by NSW Government in 2014. Since then, it has been widely used to assess the level of threat to the life, health or safety of victim-survivors in intimate partner relationships.

Even though the tool is only mandatory for use by the NSW Police Force and Safer Pathway support services, we know that a variety of programs and workers in the health and welfare sectors use the DVSAT.

It has been an important tool that has allowed for a shared language among DFV specialist workers or people who are supporting DFV victim-survivors about risk. This shared language has made collaboration much easier and has helped services respond more effectively to victim-survivors.

Since the DVSAT was first introduced, there have been a number of reviews and reports, including the 2019 Safer Pathway Evaluation, which identified areas for improvement to strengthen DVSAT. These included improving the tool’s predictive accuracy, refining the wording of questions and making sure that it works well for diverse groups of victim-survivors.

So, what has been developed? Through a project called the DVSAT Redesign, NSW Government agencies, including Legal Aid NSW, Department of Communities and Justice and NSW Police, came together to oversee the redesign the DVSAT in response to these recommendations.

We’d like to acknowledge the huge amount of work undertaken by the Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Program Unit at Legal Aid NSW, which led the development of the Support Services DVSAT specifically over a number of years in consultation with the sector.

Through the DVSAT Redesign project, where we have landed is that we now have two separate, but closely related risk assessment tools:

First up is the new Police DVSAT, which is mandatory for use by the NSW Police Force.

And of course the Support Services DVSAT, which, as I mentioned, is mandatory for Safer Pathway support services (that is, the Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Services and the Local Support Services), but it’s also encouraged for use by other specialist domestic and family violence services as well as other workers with DFV training who support victim-survivors.  

There are two tools because it reflects the different operational contexts in which the risk assessment is undertaken.

The Police tool has some of the same questions asked of victim-survivors as the Support Services tool, but otherwise, it leverages information available on DFV history in the Police’s IT system.

It’s helpful to understand that the Police use a different risk assessment tool, but we won’t go into it in detail in this webinar as it’s only to be used by the NSW Police Force and is mostly relevant for the Safer Pathway system.

Let’s take a look now at the new Support Services DVSAT.

The Support Services DVSAT is a structured professional judgement tool, which is a term you might be familiar with.

What it means is that the tool brings together information from several sources, including

evidence-based risk factors, which are presented in a tool or checklist

victim-survivor statements and narratives, particularly in relation to their level of fear or their self-assessment of the level of risk, and

the expert judgement and professional wisdom of practitioners.

One of the major changes from the current DVSAT is that the new Support Services DVSAT has three parts:

Part A, which has 17 weighted questions

 Part B, which has 15 different sections with a total of 104 questions that are optional, and

Part C, which has the victim-survivor self-assessment, along with some reflective questions for you as practitioners.

I will now go through each of the three parts in detail.

Part A includes seventeen weighted questions about known indicators of serious and escalating threat, and how recently these have occurred.

As you can see on the screen, this is the format of Part A. It has the question asked of victim-survivors, some examples or prompts, and a place to record the victim-survivor’s response and notes.

I want to draw your attention to some key differences between the current DVSAT and the new Support Services DVSAT:

Firstly, as you know, the current DVSAT applies a score of ‘one’ to each of the 25 questions in Part A. You’ll see now that the weighting applied to each question ranges from ‘one’ to ‘three’. These weightings are based on the type of violence, how recent it was and whether the behaviour is escalating

Which leads me to the second key difference. You’ll see that for six out of the seventeen questions or risk factors, additional weighting is applied if that particular behaviour has occurred within the last 12 months. This is highlighted in the purple boxes on the left column. Recency is one of the ways to help us establish escalating behaviours and the imminency of the threat.

Where it is safe and the victim-survivor consents, you should try to complete all questions in Part A.

Just like the current DVSAT, the questions are ideally asked in a conversational style. It is also helpful to be up front with the victim-survivor about the format of the tool, letting them know that questions are weighted and explaining how this may be used to inform safety planning, the supports you offer, and any referral pathways you might consider together.

Once you have completed Part A of the Support Services DVSAT with the victim-survivor, they will be assessed as either ‘at threat’ or ‘at serious threat’.

 A score between 1 and 15 points (out of a potential total of 31) in Part A, means they are assessed as ‘at threat’.

And a score of 16 or more points (out of a potential total of 31) in Part A, means they are assessed as ‘at serious threat’.

It is important to note that the Part A score is a guide about the level of threat, but it’s not the only factor to rely on. Because this is a structured professional judgement tool, we really encourage you to consider all information available to you at that point in time to inform your professional judgement in Part C.

And regardless of a person’s threat level, every victim-survivors should receive timely and effective response.

Now, let’s move on to Part B.

Part B includes 15 sections, which contain a total of 104 optional questions, that explore the types of violence that a victim-survivor may have been subjected to, and how experiences of violence intersect with their identity.

Part B is designed to support your professional judgement.

It’s important not to feel overwhelmed by this section, and remember that it is optional, and you’re encouraged to consider the sections that are relevant for the victim-survivor in consultation with them.

And as you become more familiar with the questions in Part B, you will find it easier to identify which sections or individual questions are most relevant for a victim-survivor. 

Before moving on to Part C, I want to briefly show you an extract of the sections in Part B on Coercive Control.

You’ll see a similar format to Part A where we have the question on the left hand side, some examples or prompts that help to demonstrate the myriad of ways this particular risk factor may present, the victim-survivor’s response, and a section for your notes.

Finally, let’s look at Part C.

You may find that sometimes, Part A might not give you an accurate assessment of the level of threat a victim-survivor is facing. And there are many reasons this may happen, like:

they fear reprisal from the person using violence  

they fear that their children may be harmed

there may be language or communication barriers, or

they feel a sense of mistrust or fear of an agency or service system, particularly where there are children in their care

In other cases, you might become aware of additional factors that make accessing support harder for that person, and increase the threat to their safety. For example, this may be due to:

substance use

 social or geographic isolation

mental health issues

language barriers, or

the perpetrator having access to weapons

Part C gives you space to have ask further questions about the victim-survivor’s own sense of threat to their safety. And in many cases, we know they are the best judge of their own safety because they are the most familiar with the perpetrator’s patterns of behaviour more than anyone else.

Part C also prompts you to reflect on your assessment based on the victim-survivor’s level of fear, their strengths and protective factors, and any actions already taken to support the victim-survivor’s safety.

From here, you’ll make a professional judgement about whether the victim-survivor is ‘at threat’ or ‘at serious threat’, making sure to document the reasons for this outcome.

Before we move on, I just want to remind you that both Part A and Part C of the Support Services DVSAT can generate a ‘serious threat’ outcome, and that if someone is determined to be ‘at serious threat’ in Part A of the tool, this should not be downgraded to ‘at threat’ in Part C.

So, who can the tool be used with?

The Support Services DVSAT can be used with anyone who has experienced domestic and family violence. And I want to take a moment here to walk you through who the tool can be used with because this represents another change to the DVSAT that you’re familiar with. If you recall from earlier in the webinar, one of the recommendations for the DVSAT was to improve its relevance for diverse cohorts of victim-survivors.

 So, the tool has been designed to be used with victim-survivors:

of all genders and sexualities.

those who have experienced or are experiencing abuse from partners or ex-partners, family members, or anyone in a domestic relationship

who have experienced sexual violence within an intimate, family, or domestic relationship. A note to make here is that the tool is not intended for use with people who experience sexual violence in another context, like assault by a stranger.

Generally, we recommend the DVSAT is used with victim-survivors aged 16 or over.

As you know, the level of risk to a victim-survivor is dynamic and can change over time depending on what’s happening for them, for the person using violence, or other family members.

It’s important to remember the DVSAT only gives you a point-in-time assessment of that level of risk.

That is why we recommend the Support Services DVSAT is completed early in the victim-survivor’s engagement with your service, but, as you likely already do, you continue to be highly sensitive to, and assess, any changes to that level of risk throughout the service response.

Another thing to be mindful of is that a victim-survivor’s response to the DVSAT questions may vary depending on the service context and who administers the tool.

This may be because the circumstances of the violence, the proximity of the person using violence when the tool is applied, or fear about speaking with a particular service. In particular here, we consider the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victim‑survivors, the current, historical and systemic harms they have experienced, which may influence how much they feel safe to disclose.

If it takes more than one conversation to complete the DVSAT, that’s okay. Be flexible and accommodating the victim‑survivor’s circumstances, their communication and accessibility needs, and aim to finish it within a reasonable timeframe — for example, within seven days.

Before we move onto the next section, there’s one final thing to touch on, which represents another change from the current DVSAT you’re using.

As you know, sometimes there may be more than one person using violence in a victim‑survivor’s family context.

In these situations, you should complete the DVSAT based on the primary person using violence towards the victim‑survivor.

When speaking with clients, you can also call this ‘abuse from other people’. This may be from parents, in-laws, siblings, other family, friends, caregivers and community members.

There’s a section in Part B of the tool where you can record any information or additional concerns or risks related to other violence from other people.

We’re up to section 2 now, and going to look at the process of completing the DVSAT and some helpful practice tips for the different stages of the risk assessment process, which will hopefully support you to confidently and safely complete the new tool.

Before I move on, I’d like to recognise that there is a lot of practice wisdom and expertise held by the workers and practitioners watching this webinar, and the guidance we’re about to cover may already be regularly integrated into your day-to-day work.

As I mentioned earlier, the information we cover in this section is available in the new Support Services DVSAT Guide and other practice support materials, which we’ll run through at the end.

So let’s get into it.

There’s some things we’d recommend you do before completing the risk assessment process with a victim-survivor:

Familiarise yourself with the new Support Services DVSAT. There are quite a few changes between the DVSAT you’d be used to using and the new Support Services DVSAT. It’s important that you feel comfortable with the contents of the new tool so that you can explain and walk through the risk assessment process in a way that is clear and accessible to the victim-survivor.

Sometimes we may already have information at hand that is relevant and helps us to assess the level of risk. So review the information you have and it may be a good idea to confirm with the victim-survivor if this information is still current.

If you and the victim-survivor don’t share the same first language, check in to see if they feel it would be beneficial to use an interpreter. And if you are working with an interpreter or translator, care should be taken to ensure they’re aware of their obligations to protect client confidentiality prior to any engagement with the victim-survivor.

If the victim-survivor has a disability that may affect their communication or cognition, you should seek their advice or the advice of a relevant professional about any adjustments you could make. An adjustment might arranging a face-to-face meeting or allowing for additional time and breaks to complete the assessment.

Consider how you can provide a culturally safe space for First Nations victim-survivors, whether that’s through considering how the language and structure of the DVSAT may need to be adjusted to ensure a culturally informed assessment, or looking at options for collaboration with Aboriginal workers or services.

It’s important to understand First Nation’s experiences of violence within the broader context of colonisation, dispossession, systemic racism, and child removal policies experienced by Aboriginal communities. How might this impact on a person’s sense of safety with your service, and the information they disclose.

Lastly, we really encourage you to provide the victim-survivor with a clear and transparent explanation of the risk assessment process, including its purpose, what the outcome means, and what is done with the information they share.

Now we’re ready to complete the DVSAT. And these steps are not prescriptive, but might help you to think about how to sequence some of the information you share about the risk assessment process with victim-survivors.

Of course, we must ensure the immediate safety of the victim-survivor. Always ask if it’s safe for the victim-survivor to talk, and if any children are present. If they aren’t alone, it’s not safe to talk, or they don’t want to complete the DVSAT at that time, you can ask what time would work better or arrange another safe time to talk.

Next, it’s a good idea provide a bit of an introduction to the DVSAT, explain the purpose of the assessment, and that the process is voluntary.

It’s important to inform the victim-survivor about how their information will be used and stored. We always have to be mindful that some victim-survivors may feel worried about potential repercussions of sharing certain information for them or their children. And it’s important that we are transparent about situations where their confidentiality may be limited. Here I’m thinking of where a worker has mandatory reporting obligations if they are concerned for a child’s safety.

Let the victim‑survivor know how they can opt out at any time and that they can share as much or as little as they want. You could even give a simple example of how they might indicate to you that they’d like to pause or stop the conversation. This might sound something like: “If you say next question, I’ll know to move on, or if you are quiet for a while, I’ll know to check in to see if you’d like to stop.”

This is particularly important when working with young people, people with a language barrier or communication challenges.

Once the victim‑survivor is informed about the DVSAT and knows they can opt out, ask if they’re comfortable to continue. If they don’t want to take part, explore their reasons in a non‑judgemental way.

If the victim‑survivor chooses not to continue, make a note of their decision. In these instances, we’d encourage you to still use your professional judgement to assess the level of risk.

On consent, I’d also recommend having a look at the Practice Support Resource – Completing the Support Services DVSAT for guidance around seeking the consent of someone with decision‑making support needs.

In the work that many of us do, we talk a lot about being trauma-informed. But what might this look like when it comes to completing the DVSAT? Some of the things that come to mind include:

using an empathetic tone and non-judgemental language

acknowledging that some questions in the DVSAT can be confronting, or feel intrusive and be really difficult to answer. It might be the first time that someone has actually been asked these questions

·         using strengths-based language that focuses on abilities, knowledge and strengths of the victim-survivor, and you’ll see there’s a specific section in Part C where we can record some of these

emphasising that violence is never acceptable, and it is never the victim-survivor’s fault

recognising that victim-survivors may feel a sense of fear, frustration or mistrust, which can stem from past negative experiences with systems or services that were designed to support them, and we try to see this as a form of self-protection or resistance. This is really important when it comes to asking questions about child safety, and exploring what a victim-survivor thinks will assist in keeping their children safe.  

Finally, I want to touch on a concept called ‘intersectional cultural humility’. This means that as practitioners, we reflect on our assumptions, biases and values, to deepen our understanding of cultural differences and build stronger relationships with people with backgrounds and experiences that may be different from our own.

And so we encourage you to think about humility in your practice, and ask questions in a way that respects the many facets of a person’s identity by:

genuinely engaging with their perspectives

inviting them to help you understand what is significant to them

accommodating any communication needs

checking in to confirm that they understand what you are asking

practising deep listening and allowing a person enough time to think about what you’ve asked them, and how they want to respond

Again, these are likely things that you’re already doing, or already conscious of in your practice, but we take this opportunity with the introduction of a new tool to be mindful of the victim-survivor’s experience of this risk assessment process and to consider the ways that we help ease some of the difficulty of these conversations, and prioritise safety as much as possible.

 

We acknowledge that depending on your service context, you may already have processes or practices established around the DVSAT, and what you might do once the assessment is complete.

Here we’ll cover just a few practice reminders now.

Thank the victim-survivor for talking with you about what has happened. We know that it can be an incredibly difficult conversation, and the care and compassion you have as a worker can go a long way to ensure this conversation does not cause further harm to the victim-survivor.

There is a lot of information disclosed through the DVSAT process that can help to inform safety planning and other support needs that may require referrals outside of your service. Safety planning is something we always do in partnership with the victim-survivor and doesn’t need to involve elaborate or complex actions, but should be focused on your client’s needs, priorities, and the unique environmental, relational, and systemic factors that they might be navigating.

We know that now more than ever, it’s really important to have conversations about technology facilitated abuse and tracking.

The Support Services DVSAT should be recorded in the victim-survivor’s file and as required by the agency.

For a victim-survivor who is assessed as ‘at serious threat’ based on the DVSAT, you can consider whether a referral to the relevant Safer Pathway support service - that is, the Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Services for women, and Local Support Services (LSS) for men) – so that  their matter can be discussed at the local Safety Action Meeting (SAM).

Again, child safety and responding to concerns of harm is likely something that your service has policies and procedures in place to manage, but I will touch on it briefly. It’s important that we recognise children as victim-survivors in their own right, and it follows that we should ask the victim-survivor what they think will assist in keeping their children safe and about any specific support needs their children may have.

Where you’re worried about a child and the risks they are experiencing, raise these with your manager and use the Mandatory Reporter Guide to help determine if these concerns require a report to the Child Protection Helpline. Where it’s safe and appropriate to do so, we recommend that any concerns or reports to the Helpline should be discussed with the victim‑survivor, including why the report may be needed and what it means. And of course, if a report is made, we include the strategies the victim-survivor has in place to maximise the safety of their children.

Finally, there is a range of materials that have been developed for you and your teams to help you understand the new Support Services DVSAT and apply it in your practice.

Everything we have covered in today’s webinar is explained in further detail in these materials, which are all available to you on the DCJ website. We recommend you spend some time going through these before you start to use the Support Services DVSAT, and keep these at hand to refer back to when you need them.

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to watch this webinar and for the incredibly important work you do to support victim-survivors of domestic and family violence.

If you have any questions or feedback on this webinar, please feel free to contact the Safer Pathway team at [email protected].

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