Our Training

Domestic abuse often appears in the news and across media outlets but research shows that the majority of people across communities and workplaces lack any real understanding of what domestic abuse really is, it’s impact and why it’s so complex. This workshop explores the different types of domestic abuse, the national and regional impact of domestic abuse as well as the different laws and interventions that currently exist to combat it. A range of case studies are explored as well as research into the value of creating grass-roots training in domestic abuse across communities and workplaces that are having contact with both victims and perpetrators of abuse every day but have no understanding or skills to recognise the signs.

The session looks in depth at both psychological abuse and coercive control which underpins many different cases of domestic abuse.

Suffering from domestic abuse may be just one of many challenges that a victim is facing. This workshop explores both the manifestation of domestic abuse in terms of trauma and psychological torture but also explores different needs, vulnerabilities and barriers that both victims and perpetrators face which complicate creating any sustainable changes in their circumstances. Gender, Age, Mental Health, Substance Misuse as well as Unemployment are looked at within Alpha Vesta’s ‘Big 12’ Complexity Areas.  Different Ethnicities and LGBT communities also form part of this workshop in order to understand better the challenges that complicate domestic abuse even more and facilitate the cycle of abuse further.  Recognising the signs, fostering a non-judgemental and trauma-informed approachare all explored.

The session is designed for attendees to never question why someone ‘doesn’t just leave’ an abusive relationship.

The session looks in depth at both psychological abuse and coercive control which underpins many different cases of domestic abuse.

The Social and Economic costs of Domestic Abuse were explored in a Home Office Report released in 2019. Costs were calculated at £66 billion per year, with £14 billion of this as a direct cost to businesses themselves. A further study released in November 2019 highlighted the barriers to career progression for victims and the costs of just absence alone in relation to domestic abuse. This workshop explores this impact in terms of the victim themselves but also their work colleagues and employers. Increased absence, lateness, lower productivity, reduced health and wellbeing along with a number of case studies are all explored in order to create a thorough picture. 

This is followed by how workplaces can minimise the impact by embedding a culture of understanding around domestic abuse, develop a robust policy as well as deliver safe and effective support to employees taking into account important issues of risk and confidentiality.  

Children are impacted by domestic abuse in the home in a number of different ways both psychologically and physically. The signs are often subtle and for those around them, considering that they may be living in an abusive home, has never entered their mind. When we aren’t able to pick up on the subtle signs, the abuse continues, resulting in extreme trauma and neglect for many children who are living in a ‘state of red alert’ every day.

This workshop explores the impact that different types of domestic abuse have on children living in abusive homes. 89% of children having lived in abusive homes lack emotional wellbeing and 60% feel they are to blame for the abuse that may be taking place. For many, the abuse may just become normal for them. Understanding this impact is fundamental to a greater understanding of domestic abuse and its manifestation. Understand how children are often used as a weapon by the perpetrator as well as becoming a complex barrier for victims trying to their change their circumstances. This workshop also includes ways in which we can both recognise the signs and support children safely and effectively.  

Due to the subjective nature of domestic abuse and the shame and stigma that sit around it, recognising the signs can be incredibly challenging. This is why often cases of domestic abuse reach crisis point before anyone realised that abuse was even occurring. We therefore have to become better at recognising and responding to the signs across our communities, within our workplaces and amongst those we work with, at an earlier point. By understanding some of the issues and barriers that sit in and around domestic abuse, we are better equipped to reach those affected at a much earlier point. Eating Disorders are often deeply entangled with domestic abuse and this session explores why and how that happens.

The session includes an interview with Lucy Whittaker, Founding Director of Alpha Vesta and Actress Gemma Oaten, Manager of SEED Eating Disorder Support Service who have been supporting Alpha Vesta in the writing of the session.

Attendees will:-

• Understand why the signs of domestic abuse are incredibly challenging to recognise
• Understand why sometimes we will spot the difficulties occurring around the abuse before the abuse itself
• Understand the different types of Eating Disorders
• Understand the different ways Domestic Abuse and Eating Disorders are deeply entangled.
• Feel better equipped to spot the signs of domestic abuse and/or an Eating Disorder
• Understand how to reach out safely and effectively 
• Know where and how to refer or signpost for support and help

The aim of the session is to raise awareness of the correlation between domestic abuse and the abuse of pets who are also members of that former or current family dynamic. It forms part of a suite of additional enhanced sessions on the additional layers that sit in and around domestic abuse and interact with it in a dynamic way.

Learning Outcomes Attendees will:-

• Understand why the signs of domestic abuse are incredibly challenging to recognise
• Understand why sometimes we will spot additional behaviours occurring around the domestic abuse before the abuse itself
• Understand why the abuse of Pets is closely correlated with Domestic Abuse
• Understand the different ways in which Pets may be at risk of abuse or violence
• Understand the effect on a child or victim of abuse who is witnessing the abuse of their pet 
• Spotting the Signs –What you might see, hear or notice? 
• Understand the complexity in legislation in this area
• Feel better equipped to spot the signs of domestic abuse and the abuse of pets
• Know where to reach out to if you are concerned about a pet living in home where domestic abuse may be occurring

This workshop is for those that have completed ‘Impact of Domestic Abuse in the Workplace’ (Core3)and have received a direct invite from Alpha Vesta to book this session.

This session builds on awareness in the first workshop where we look at practical elements of building a strategy and policy around domestic abuse in the Workplace.

This includes a combination of broad awareness packages and training to embed culture and build understanding as well as specific skills-based work.

The session looks at how to embed culture and build understanding as well as key elements that any domestic abuse policy should contain.

The session also includes Case Studies where attendees can think about how they would respond in specific situations.

For many children who are living in a ‘state of red alert’ every day. This fear, vulnerability and exhaustion leads them to be at risk of significant harm outside the home as well as inside the home. 

Extra-Familial is a term used to describe something that occurs outside of the family or home. It refers to the different harms, risks and threats that children may face outside of their family and the home. These include gangs, county lines, radicalisation, harmful sexual behaviours, child exploitation, online grooming and child trafficking as well as criminal activity and cycle of violence. 

There is a strong victim/perpetrator overlap where children become embroiled in these different areas as both victims and perpetrators as part of their underlying need to survive and get through each day.

This workshop explores the correlation with children that have experienced domestic abuse in the home and their subsequent vulnerability to extra-familial harm outside the home. 

This workshop has been co-written by Lucy Whittaker and Natalie Queiroz, Survivor of Domestic Abuse and OCN Level 3 Gangs Expert.

This 3 hr online workshop results in Alpha Vesta’s CPD Accredited Certificate in ‘Understanding Domestic Abuse and its Impact –Workplace Training’.

The session is for those that have completed all 4 of Alpha Vesta’s Core Workshops and have completed an Online Assessment.

The session pulls together all 4 core courses and explores the interaction and impact of domestic abuse.  The session looks at the need to safeguard both victims and their children regardless of whether a case enters the criminal justice system and some of the complexity around this.  Current legislation is discussion along with a Toolbox of resources and interventions designed to fill some gaps in current provision.

Standardised Risk Assessments are explored as well as the need to ‘dig deeper’ and form a robust professional judgement of what you might be seeing, hearing and noticing in someone you are concerned about.