00:00When someone calls 999 about domestic abuse, the decisions made in those first few minutes can be critical.
00:07In Merseyside, those calls are now set to be supported in real time by specialist domestic abuse professionals embedded directly
00:15inside police control rooms.
00:17The move comes after Merseyside Police's Crime Commissioner secured £120,000 of home office funding to implement Raneem's law locally.
00:25The scheme is named in memory of Raneem Ouda and her mother, Haula Salim, who were murdered in 2018 in
00:32Solihull by Raneem's ex-husband.
00:34Raneem's law is designed to strengthen how police assess, risk and respond to domestic abuse, with a wider aim of
00:41reducing violence against women and girls by half over the next decade.
00:45In Merseyside, the funding will place two independent domestic violence advocates, known as IDVAs, inside the 999 control room for
00:54the first time.
00:55They'll work alongside call handlers, offering immediate specialist advice, improving risk assessment and helping ensure victims are connected to appropriate
01:04safeguarding support at the earliest opportunity.
01:07Merseyside's Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Sporrell said embedding experts at the point of contact is vital to ensuring victims
01:14receive the right support at what's often the most dangerous moment in their lives.
01:19Support services involved in delivery say the approach ensures risk is identified earlier and responses are strengthened at the very
01:26start of a call for help.
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