National conference on what works in preventing serious violence

A national conference on how forces and agencies can tackle serious violence was held in Leicester yesterday (Monday 10 July).

Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Violence Reduction Network, in partnership with the University of Leicester and the Home Office, welcomed policy-makers, practitioners and academics from across the UK to share new research insights and best practice on preventing and reducing violence.

The conference was opened by Leicestershire Police’s Deputy Chief Constable, David Sandall.

he conference was especially timely with the recent implementation of the Serious Violence Duty which requires specified agencies across England and Wales to work together to develop public health strategies aimed at preventing and reducing violence.

More than 150 professionals attended the ‘Serious Violence: Research and Evaluation Conference’ in Leicester, sharing learning on effective approaches to understanding the local problem of serious violence, delivering evidence-informed responses and evaluating effectiveness.

Attendees heard from a wide-range of experts from the Home Office, Youth Endowment Fund, Violence Reduction Units, Universities, research agencies and police forces.

A series of panel discussions covered:

• Key areas of progress, challenges and future priorities in relation to serious violence policy, public health approaches, researching serious violence and evaluation.
• Insights from recent research on the nature, extent and distribution of serious violence, along with the causes and drivers of serious violence.
• Designing and implementing public health interventions aimed at preventing serious violence.
• New and innovative approaches to preventing or reducing serious violence including bystander interventions and sport programmes.
• The importance of evaluation and different approaches to assessing effectiveness.

DCC David Sandall, said: “I was honoured to open this conference.  The conference was the ideal opportunity for VRNs, police forces and other agencies to get together and share their experiences and learn from each other.

“The VRN is funded by the Home Office and aims to create longer term violence reduction programmes with the support of the force, the Youth Justice Service, education providers and substance misuse organisation. 

“We work closely with the VRN to ensure the root causes of violent behaviour are addressed and early intervention is available to all, with the aim of successfully tackling the causes and consequences of violence.

“A variety of subjects were covered in the conference by expert panellists who are recognised in their fields of research, policy and implementation.  It gave those involved an opportunity to address challenges and share their knowledge and ideas for future collaborative work."

Rupert Matthews, Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “It was hugely inspiring to see Leicestershire leading the way in combating violent crime at an academic level. I was proud to see that the conference attracted top level speakers and attendees who made important contributions to the debate and shared best practices from across the country.”

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