Voice Northants and EMAS offer new referral process for domestic abuse victims

At Voice, it’s vital that victims and witnesses of crime are able to access our support services quickly and conveniently, whenever they’re required.

It’s for this reason that we’ve worked hard to build a number of relationships with key partners and organisations throughout the county to ensure the Voice service is clearly signposted for those most in need.

We’re therefore delighted to announce that we have agreed a referral pathway for domestic abuse victims with the East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS).

Zoe Rodger-Fox, Head of Safeguarding at East Midlands Ambulance Service, said:

“This new referral pathway in Northamptonshire will enable our ambulance crews to refer a patient directly to the Voice Victim & Witness Service for domestic abuse specialist support.

“When one of our ambulance crews attends a victim of domestic abuse who is experiencing an emergency, the crew will complete a referral which our Safeguarding Team will send to Voice.

“This direct domestic abuse pathway has increased the support we can provide our patients because victims of violence and abuse will be able to speak to Voice earlier and access much needed support more quickly.”

Voice Chief Executive, Fiona Campbell, explains how the new referral process will benefit victims of domestic abuse:

“We’re very pleased to have created a clear, simple referral pathway for domestic abuse victims with the East Midlands Ambulance Service.

“Voice provides information, guidance, support and specialist help to ensure victims of domestic abuse are able to cope and recover from their experiences and by working with EMAS, we can ensure the people who need our services the most are given a clear path to us.

“The referral process has been designed to make it as simple as possible for people to obtain support from Voice. When EMAS attends an incident and discovers that the victim doesn’t want to report the incident to police, they can make an online referral to Voice on their behalf.

“I’d like to thank EMAS for their hard work and desire to put the referral pathway in place; it will make a significant difference for victims of domestic abuse.”

If you’ve experienced or witnessed domestic abuse, the Voice team can help you cope, recover and thrive, no matter when or where the incident took place. Contact our friendly team, whenever you’re ready, by clicking here.