‘Now is the time for a robust response’: Fed rep reacts to new national VAWG centre

22 May 2025

A Federation representative with years of experience combatting violence against women and girls (VAWG) has welcomed the arrival of a new national police centre promising specialist responses to such crime.

The National Centre for VAWG and Public Protection opened last month (April) in Ryton, Warwickshire, after being backed by more than £13 million of government funding.

It is set to bring around 100 officers and staff together to act as a national coordinating function – a capability usually reserved exclusively for counterterrorism and serious and organised crime – and prioritise the likes of domestic violence, sexual abuse and stalking against women and children.

Branch workplace rep Kelly Draper is currently an acting sergeant within Dyfed Powys Police’s Crime and Incident Hub, but says her previous position in the Force as a domestic abuse (DA) officer has been the highlight of her policing career so far.

 

Branch workplace rep Kelly Draper.

 

Through this role, Kelly has helped countless high-risk DA victims across the Ceredigion area to gain refuge from their circumstances and ‘change their lives for the better’.

Outside of her operational duties, she has also worked as a vulnerability training coordinator, and as someone who identifies gaps in police capabilities around both DA and wider VAWG, she readily endorsed the need for a dedicated national facility.

“I think the new centre is a welcome addition to our force – in my view, it represents a big step forward towards finally bringing VAWG in line with other serious crime,” Kelly said.

“Of course, it’s important to acknowledge something like domestic violence, for example, can happen to men and boys too, but these sorts of crimes have disproportionately impacted women and girls for too long, and now is the time for that robust response to come in.

Victims

“For me, the best outcome of the centre would be our ability to identify risk being strengthened, so we can then put better safeguarding in place for victims and potential victims. 

“The aims set out around training, research, investigation and tracking will hopefully allow that to happen, so I think this opening is very good.”

Kelly attributes her passion for VAWG all the way back to her early experiences in the Metropolitan Police, where she started life as a cop in 1998.

The 48-year-old highlighted a handful of jobs she went on as a response officer in London, which shaped her outlook on DA matters.

“I can still remember some of the first victims of DA I ever saw – the ones who had really been left in a bad way. It left a lasting impact on me, and from then on, I felt like I had a purpose to help people in these situations,” she added.

VAWG

“When it comes to victims, I think the most important thing has always been them knowing they will be believed, listened to and protected by the police.

“That sense of trust is vital, and I’ve seen it become a huge barrier when it’s lacking. A lot of hard work will be needed in the centre, but even the announcement [of its opening] itself should raise awareness about how serious the force is around supporting victims of VAWG.”

And for Kelly, this commitment needs to be publicised as widely as possible, so ‘victims of all backgrounds’ know comprehensive help is out there.

Another stigma within the DA landscape she pointed towards was how financially stable victims may fear being viewed as not truly ‘trapped’ in their home in a way someone from a lower-income household might be.

A central objective of the national VAWG centre is to enhance the knowledge of all 43 police forces in England and Wales so relevant officers can handle cases arising from all sorts of circumstances and demographics.

Dedication

Change is also taking place internally to Dyfed Powys Police, with the Force in the process of adapting to a fresh domestic abuse risk assessment (DARA) as modelled by the College of Policing – the body set to run the new centre alongside the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC).

Kelly reserved praise for this move, especially with a mind to the potential for rural isolation in the largest geographical area covered by any force in England and Wales. 

“At the heart of any conversation around DA should be the idea that it does not discriminate against anyone, whether you live in the city or on a farm, you’re rich or poor, or you’re young or old.

“I have been a victim myself – someone whose job it has been to fight against it. 

“And it has made me fight even harder. It has even been part of my inspiration to become a rep, to give back to the Fed for helping me through the difficulties it caused me at work.

“DA and VAWG need specialised policing dedication, and I hope the force can continue to level up in this respect to give the public what they deserve from us.”

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