The Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex, Katy Bourne, has been successful in securing an additional £1.34m funding from the Home Office Domestic Abuse & Stalking Perpetrator Fund to be spent over the next two years.
The funding will be used to continue our first countywide multi-agency stalking and domestic abuse perpetrator programme, helping to tackle some of Sussex’s most prolific and harmful abusers and stalkers in our bid to tackle violence against women and girls.
The ground-breaking programme was established in 2021 following our successful bid for Government funding. It brings together Sussex Police, mental health workers, drug & alcohol specialists as well as offender management caseworkers to uncover and address the reasons why perpetrators commit these crimes.
The aim is to change perpetrators’ behaviours and reduce their re-offending through evidence-based interventions.
Securing this additional funding means that we can continue to spearhead this important specialist programme.
"We know that crimes such as domestic abuse and stalking are often complex so it’s vital we build on programmes that successfully change perpetrators’ behaviours whilst carefully supporting their victims", says Katy Bourne.
You can read more about the programme and funding announcement on my website.
Shop's crime-busting app
Following a successful launch earlier this year in Haywards Heath, the smartphone app called ‘DISC’ has now been rolled out to retailers in both Burgess Hill and East Grinstead.
DISC is already used in East Sussex as well as over 550 towns and city centres across the UK. It is a secure online information-sharing system which allows retailers to distribute news, information and intelligence to each other and the police in real-time.
"I often speak with retailers who tell me that ‘time’ is a big factor in why some crimes in their stores go unreported so I am delighted to continue to fund and support the further expansion of this effective scheme across Sussex", says Katy Bourne.
"When I visited Burgess Hill retailers yesterday, they told me that the ability to communicate quickly with local stores about offenders and to report all incidents immediately to police, will be a ‘game-changer’. The use of DISC will also help officers identify offenders and prevent further crimes thus making our high streets safer and more enjoyable places for us all to visit."
Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner
