This report discusses various UK programmes and initiatives that address family violence. The author visited the UK to seek out ideas which could be built on to benefit the New Zealand family violence context. Two main areas of interest were to explore how to assist mothers and children to safely leave violent situations and investigate inter-agency responses to developing systematic and collaborative frameworks for addressing family violence. Other areas of interest included stopping violence programmes, risk assessment, specialist domestic violence courts, children's programmes, crisis advocacy services, and police and advocate partnerships. A national and local coordinated approach, similar to the one described in the report, is advocated to address domestic violence in New Zealand. A number of recommendations are made that traverse the following: a national and local strategy, multi-agency risk forums, professional advocacy services, safe homes, and the criminal justice system. The author posits that New Zealand could realistically get domestic violence under control, suggesting that willing and sustained effort from Ministers down could achieve this vision.

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