Red Snapper Managed Services – Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programme

By Jake Neller

Between 2018 to 2023, police-recorded incidents of violence against women and girls increased by 37%, highlighting the necessity of Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programmes (DAPP). In response to this increase, Red Snapper Managed Services (RSMS) has been delivering a DAPP since 2023 across Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. This initiative is aimed at addressing the increasing number of domestic abuse-related cases by offering rehabilitative support to individuals assessed as posing varying levels of risk.

Red Snappers’ Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programme

RSMS’s DAPP is designed to reduce the incidence of domestic abuse across all intimate relationships, including those within the LGBTQ+ community. The programme supports individuals in recognising the signs of abuse, increasing their understanding of what constitutes harmful behaviour, and equipping them with practical skills to build healthier, more meaningful relationships. Through a focus on healing attachment wounds, enhancing communication, managing emotions, and developing empathy, participants are guided toward more respectful and non-abusive ways of relating to others.

RSMS is committed to making this programme accessible and inclusive for everyone, including individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds, neurodiverse individuals, and those from marginalised or minority communities. To support meaningful engagement, the DAPP can be adapted to meet individual needs; this includes using simplified language, offering a gender-neutral framework, providing visual or written workbooks, and facilitating interpretation services for those whose first language is not English.

Since the programme launched in 2023, RSMS has successfully supported 105 individuals through the DAPP. Of those, 94.3% achieved either a positive outcome, indicating meaningful progress and positive changes in problematic behaviour, or a neutral outcome, reflecting initial shifts in thinking patterns with further work needed to sustain long-term behavioural change.

Development of a Tiered Intervention Model

In line with RSMS’s commitment to evidence-based practice and our overarching goal of reducing Intimate Partner Violence and protecting victims, we recently conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the DAPP. The findings presented an opportunity to further enhance our delivery to meet the complex needs of individuals across varying levels of risk. In response, and in collaboration with Clinical Psychologists, we developed a tiered intervention model tailored to align more closely with assessed risk levels. The rationale was clear: individuals assessed as higher risk often present with more entrenched criminogenic needs and maladaptive behaviours, requiring a more intensive and targeted level of support.

The outcome of the evaluation was a bespoke three-tier suite of interventions:

Setting RSMS’ DAPP intervention apart from similar interventions is the adoption of a strength-based approach. Rather than focusing solely on deficits and risk factors, strength-based interventions seek to recognise and build upon the individual’s existing capabilities, resilience, and potential for change. This empowers participants to take ownership of their behaviour and progress, which is essential for sustained transformation.

Service User Testimonials

What follows is a series of quotes from Service Users who completed the DAPP intervention with RSMS: