Embedding Domestic Abuse–Informed Practice Through the Safe & Together Model in Equally Safe Falkirk
A case study from the Improvement Service, developed with Barnardo’s Equally Safe Falkirk service, Aberlour, and Falkirk Council, documents how embedding the Safe & Together™ Model into frontline domestic abuse support shifted practitioner confidence and multi-agency practice across Falkirk, Scotland. Equally Safe Falkirk works with survivors, children, and perpetrators through its Trauma Support Service and Family Group Decision Making process and delivers Safe & Together Overview, Core, Train the Trainer, and Supervisor training to staff and partner agencies including housing, health, and social work. The case study draws on a practitioner survey run between October and November 2024, Equally Safe Falkirk’s Delivering Equally Safe–funded activity report, and case studies from survivors supported by the service.
Between April and September 2024, Equally Safe Falkirk supported 147 survivors, 286 children, and 58 perpetrators; 130 survivors accepted support from at least one part of the service, and 27 survivors and their children reported improved outcomes at closure. Before Core Training, 89% of practitioners said they rarely or never used the Safe & Together Model in their work; afterward, 83% said they were completely or very enthusiastic about applying its skills and principles. Practitioners reported using Safe & Together’s strengths-based language to partner with survivors, and 67% agreed the Model’s rollout made perpetrators more visible in multi-agency settings and shifted focus from survivors to perpetrators in meetings and documentation. Falkirk Council has since committed to funding two seats in the Safe & Together Train the Trainer program to expand training capacity.
The case study also names where practice fell short of consistency: practitioners trained in Safe & Together sometimes found themselves working alongside untrained colleagues in other agencies, creating a fragmented response; several called for more structured support after training, such as refresher courses and practice guides; and time, caseload, and capacity pressures limited engagement with ongoing peer forums. Perpetrator accountability remained a specific gap, particularly within child protection and children’s hearing settings, compounded by inconsistent training among partner agencies and by perpetrators’ own limited engagement.