Mayor awards excellence in domestic violence work

Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, announced the winners of the mayoral awards for innovation and good practice in domestic violence work, at a reception in City Hall today.

The Mayor’s Domestic Violence Awards, which is now in its 5th year, recognises organisations that have demonstrated a commitment to supporting victims of domestic violence in line with the Mayor’s Domestic Violence Strategy.

Commenting on the award winners, Mr Livingstone said: "These awards are about honouring organisations that have thought creatively about educating and assisting people who have been affected by domestic violence.

"I hope that these awards will continue to encourage organisations in the important work they are doing, and will help to show victims the wide range of care and support that is out there for them."

He continued: "Since the launch of my first strategy to address domestic violence, there has been a significant improvement in the way domestic violence is addressed in London.  More victims are coming forward and reporting incidents of domestic violence. We have a growing number of specialist domestic violence courts in the capital and domestic violence related murders are down by a third. As opposed to the national trend, which looks set to double.

"This is encouraging but we still have a long way to go. I will continue to work with the Metropolitan Police and the London Domestic Violence Forum to address domestic violence in London."