WARWICKSHIRE Police say they have learnt lessons and are doing all they can to improve services in the wake of Luisa Mendes’ death.
Following the inquest, a Domestic Homicide Review (DHR) was published, which looks at the way agencies interacted with Ms Mendes and each other.
It also identifies what lessons can be learnt for the future.
The force has apologised after admitting it ‘let down’ both Ms Mendes and her family but say improvements have already been and continue to be made in response to the DHR and IPCC investigation.
These include improving domestic violence policies, procedures and training of professionals and implementing a Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) to provide a co-ordinated, consistent approach to safeguarding children and adults.
Call handlers have received extra training specifically relating to vulnerability assessment and risk assessment processes have been put in place to identify repeated domestic abuse incidents that on their own are not judged as being high risk, but collectively could be considered high risk.
Warwickshire County Council has commissioned a domestic abuse training, support and referral programme for GPs, while the county has signed up to the Blue Light Programme, which is designed to reduce alcohol-related harm and domestic abuse and violence associated with treatment-resistant drinkers.
Dep Ch Con Karen Manners of Warwickshire Police said: “Nothing can bring Luisa back but we would like to reassure her family we are learning from the inquest, the IPCC’s findings and the DHR.
“By adopting a culture of continuous learning, our aim is to ensure every measure is put in place to identify and support vulnerable people.”
Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Philip Seccombe added: “This was a tragic case and Warwickshire Police has fully acknowledged there were failings in the way they responded to her call.
“Since 2012, the force and partner agencies have worked hard to improve how they interact with each other when dealing with vulnerable people.
“While progress to date has been significant, there is no room for complacency and work to improve the way vulnerable people are protected from harm is continuous.”
Visit http://safeinwarwickshire.com/domestic-homicide-reviews to read the review.
