Community Payback Order Programme: Domestic Offences
Programme Name:
The Caledonian System
Description:
The Caledonian System is an integrated approach to addressing domestic abuse perpetrated by adult male offenders and improving the lives of women and children. The system was developed to replace several local authority initiatives previously in place and has been in operation since 2009. The Caledonian System takes the form of an intervention system comprising of: • The Men’s Service – which provides a programme of work with male perpetrators of domestic abuse lasting at least two years, which includes preparation and motivation sessions; a group work programme of twenty-five sessions and post group work. This is delivered by trained social workers. • The Women’s Service – which provides a safety planning, information, advice and emotional support to female partners and ex-partners. This can be delivered by trained social workers or in partnership with third parties such as Women’ Aid. • The Children’s Service – which ensures that the needs of the children whose parents are involved with the Caledonian are met and their rights upheld. Internal and external protocols, coupled with training, have been designed to maximise women and children’s safety. The programme is delivered by a Caledonian Central Team based within Community Justice Scotland (CJS) who provide oversight and training.
Contact information:
Further Information:
The Caledonian programme is delivered by a dedicated Caledonian Systems Delivery Team (CSDT) in South Lanarkshire. The team comprises of three different components, where the social work Justice team, the women’ service (provided by Women’ Aid), and the children’ service (provided by CIRCLE) all work together as part of a multi-agency team. The Caledonian programme is a modular programme which focuses on work undertaken with men who have a pattern of offending behaviour which is domestically abusive in nature. South Lanarkshire delivers the Caledonian programme in partnership with Women’ Aid and CIRCLE, providing a service not only to the men placed on the programme but also with the women and children who have been negatively affected by the behaviour. The programme is delivered on an individual and group work basis, with men being supported to complete a pre-group work programme prior to modules being progressed. The programme involves supporting men to reduce their involvement in offending whilst improving the safety of women and children who have been impacted by the men’ behaviours.