Mayor’s VAWG Fund Tranche 4 – VAWG Services Fund: 6-month ext 2022/23

In February 2019, the Mayor announced £15m of new investment to improve access to services and increase the support to victims and survivors of violence against women and girls (VAWG). The Mayor’s VAWG Fund was to be delivered across financial years 2019-2022 and was broken down into in four Tranches. Tranche 4 – the VAWG Services Fund has the sole objective of ensuring organisations were able to manage the increasing demand on services, providing women and girls with the best chance to cope and recover. This funding is currently due to end in March 2022.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK in March 2020, there has been a consistent increase in demand for services for women and girls affected by VAWG. This decision is seeking approval to extend funding for six months to five tranche 4 projects, from April 2022 to September 2022 to the value of £1,688,537, and to approve the carry-forward of £187,085 enabling a nine month extension to one project.

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to:

1. Approve the carry-forward of £187,085 to award a 9-month extension, from April 2022 to December 2022, to the Anita Project (Nia).

2. Approve the 6-month grant funding extension, from April 2022 to September 2022, for a total of £1,688,537 to the following projects:

• Ascent Advice Plus 2 (Solace) £347,861

• London Stalking Support Service (Suzy Lamplugh Trust) £187,500

• Prevention & Action Through Community Engagement and Training – P&ACT (Asian Women’s Resource Centre) £266,615

• London Holistic and Advocacy Wrap Around Service (Southall Black Sisters) £477,898

• CouRAGEous (Women and Girls Network) £408,663

1. Introduction and background

1.1. The Mayor’s VAWG Fund was established in 2019. This funding was to be delivered across financial years 2019-2022 and was broken down into four tranches. Tranche 4: The VAWG Services Fund – Managing an Increase in Demand had the sole purpose of ensuring organisations were able to manage the increasing demand for services, providing women and girls with the best chance to cope and recover.

1.2. The VAWG Services Fund was subject to a competitive commissioning process and an evidence-based approach was taken to ensure that services delivered to areas with the most need. The following priority areas were identified:

• Young people (14 -24 years)

• Women with multiple disadvantages

• Non-crisis support

• Harmful practices; and

• Women with no recourse to public funds

1.3. In 2019 PCD 633 granted approval to award grants to five organisations providing support over a three-year period (2019/20 – 2021/22) to victims-survivors of VAWG. PCD 720 approved award of a grant to Nia Ending Violence for the Anita Project a two-year period (2020/21 – 2021/22) to improve the London response to safely exiting prostitution.

1.4. Following evaluation and moderation the following projects were given grant awards:

2. Issues for consideration

2.1. A six-month funding extension is the minimum timeframe required to enable the services to retain staff and to be able to continue to take referrals. Services are currently looking at their exit plans and decommissioning, with staff retention being a significant risk, therefore a decision regarding an extension is required now.

2.2. In order to support service delivery and staff retention, whilst wider longer term Mayoral funding decisions are made linked to the new PCP and VAWG strategy, a decision is being sought now to extend the projects for six months. This will provide organisations with some level of assurance for important VAWG services in London.

2.3. The Anita Project began mobilisation in August 2020, 6-months after the other projects within the VAWG Services Fund and therefore began operating during the first lockdown which has contributed to the underspend. The carry-forward and extension will enable the project to fully test the pilot operating model as designed.

3. Financial Comments

3.1. This report requests DMPC approval to fund six VAWG Tranche 4 projects during 2022/23.

3.2. Total budget required for the six projects is £1,875,622. Of this amount, £187,085 is presently held within 2021/22 Commissioning and Partnerships budget. The £187,085 will be earmarked as carry forward budget into 2022/23 financial year specifically for the Anita project.

3.3. The other five projects require new funding of £1,688,537 to enable service continuity from April to September 2022.

3.4. Funding for the period of six months will be recognised within 2022/23 budget plan as a one-off drawdown from MOPAC unallocated reserves to facilitate project delivery from 1st April 2022.

4. Legal Comments

4.1. MOPAC’s general powers are set out in the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 (the 2011 Act). Section 3(6) of the 2011 Act provides that MOPAC must “secure the maintenance of the metropolitan police service and secure that the metropolitan police service is efficient and effective.” Under Schedule 3, paragraph 7 MOPAC has wide incidental powers to “do anything which is calculated to facilitate, or is conducive or incidental to, the exercise of the functions of the Office.” Paragraph 7(2) (a) provides that this includes entering into contracts and other agreements.

4.2. Section 143 (1) (b) the Anti-Social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 provides an express power for MOPAC, as a local policing body, to provide or commission services “intended by the local policing body to help victims or witnesses of, or other persons affected by, offences and anti-social behaviour.”

4.3. The recommendations in this decision are in line with the legislation and in line with MOPAC’s Scheme of Delegation as set out below.

4.4. In line with section 4 of MOPAC’s Scheme of Consent and Delegation, the DMPC has authority for the:

4.4.1. approval of business cases for revenue expenditure above £500,000 (section 4.8);

4.4.2. approval of the strategy for the award of individual grants and the award of all individual grants (section 4.8); and

4.4.3. approval of the procurement strategy and requests to go out for tender for contracts (section 4.13).

4.5. In line with section 5.22 of MOPAC’s Scheme of Delegation, the Chief Executive Officer has authority for the finalisation of planning and contractual/grant arrangements, including relevant terms and the signing of contracts and grant agreements.

5. Commercial Issues

5.1. There was an open, competitive procurement process to allocate funding to the VAWG Services fund projects. This decision is seeking a short term grant funding extension to provide some security to services which meet the needs of vulnerable women and girls and has been approved through MOPAC’s governance processes.

6. Public Health Approach

6.1. VAWG is a significant public health issue, costing the health care system £1.3 billion a year. All forms of VAWG have significant and enduring impacts on individual’s physical health and mental wellbeing.

7. GDPR and Data Privacy

7.1. MOPAC will adhere to the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018 and ensure that any organisations who are commissioned to do work with or on behalf of MOPAC are fully compliant with the policy and understand their GDPR responsibilities.

8. Equality Comments

8.1. MOPAC is required to comply with the public sector equality duty set out in section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010. This requires MOPAC to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations by reference to people with protected characteristics. The protected characteristics are: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

8.2. MOPAC is clear that the outputs from this programme of work will provide a better standard of provision to victims and survivors of VAWG whilst having a greater positive impact on certain groups in society who are disproportionately vulnerable to and affected by crime. These services are provided by consortia, the majority of which are focussed on minoritised women.

9. Background/supporting papers

9.1. PCD 633 signed in 2019 granted approval to award grants to five of the six projects comprising the VAWG Services Fund (tranche 4 of the Mayor’s VAWG Fund) for three years.

9.2. PCD 720 granted approval to award a grant to the sixth VAWG Services Fund project, The Anita Project for two years.