Response to Media: The Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Harassment and so-called Honour Based Abuse Risk Identification, Assessment and Management Model (DASH 2009-2025)
Firstly, my heartfelt sympathies go out to all the families whose loved ones have been murdered by abusive and controlling men who were allowed to escalate their behaviour. That’s not ok. Male violence to women is at epidemic proportions because of a lack of action, leadership, supervision, priority and accountability across the last 16 years despite many of us raising the alarm.
Having seen the recent irresponsible claims about the DASH Risk Model, I want to make it clear that the DASH Risk Identification, Assessment and Management Model is in no way responsible for killing anyone. It is a structured set of questions to guide a conversation with a victim, as they know the abuser best, to ensure effective safety planning and offender risk management geared to the risks identified. Any tool is only as good as the end user - Expert lead training and implementation are vital to the success of any tool or model.
The DASH was developed by myself on behalf of ACPO/NPCC and in partnership with Safe Lives. Many agencies and victims and survivors also contributed to it.
The DASH was created in response to the increasing number of murders of women and children by controlling and abusive men. When I reviewed many of the murders in London, I found that many women were not believed or taken seriously when they reported to police.
There was little or no safety planning with the victim.
There was no proactive investigation or action taken to arrest the perpetrator.
There was no understanding of coercive control, stalking or so-called honour based abuse.
There was no join up or risk management of serial perpetrators.
The DASH was created to ensure one common language about risk to:
change and save lives;
ensure a common language between police services;
ensure a common language across all other agencies and multi-agency work;
ensure an effective investigation;
ensure safety planning for victims;
ensure risk management for abusers;
join up serial and dangerous perpetrator’s histories.
When implemented with accredited training by experts, in London we saw:
Increased arrests;
Improved standards of investigation;
Charges increased;
Compliance with positive action through CJS;
Improved recording of intelligence;
Better risk identification and intervention;
Improved sharing of information between agencies;
Support and safety planning for victims;
Monitoring and targeting perpetrators, and;
Reduction in homicide, rape and serious violence.
In London there was a 58% reduction in domestic violence murders across 13 years.
I made representation to ACPO/NPCC for a national implementation plan to roll out the DASH across the UK and for accredited training for all police forces. They declined.
Without expert-led accredited training any tool is blunt. NO tool will work. Without clear policy, implementation will be patchy. Without leadership, there was no accountability. When someone claims “the DASH does not work” check these things first please. In my experience, the person using the DASH is the problem. Lack of training means lack of effective use.
Most of the murders I have reviewed, the professional(s) were not trained, or they weren't trained to the accredited standard and most had no understanding of coercive control and /or stalking or so-called honour based abuse. Most so-called medium risk cases should be HIGH risk and it was obvious to any trained assessor. There should be no adding up of numbers in boxes because risk is not additive.
The DASH did not kill anybody - violent and dangerous MEN did and they were left unchecked and allowed to escalate to murder. This is a leadership issue, a lack of priority issue and an accountability problem. This is not new and has been going on for years across the UK and it must stop. Victims deserve better.
The claim that DASH is the problem – the single point of blame (SPOB)- is grossly misleading and deceptive.
Male violence to women is at epidemic levels because solving male violence has never been a priority. It’s that simple.
The whole system needs to be reviewed with urgency.
Serial abusers have been left unchecked for far too long and this is part of this problem along with a lack of national implementation plan and accredited training for the DASH.
In most cases included in adverse articles about the DASH, the victims were failed, no action was taken, and the abuser was a serial and/or repeat offender.
Bethany Fields, West Yorkshire Police
Bethany reported her ex, Paul Crowther, to West Yorkshire Police many times. She ended the relationship, he was coercively controlling, he escalated his behaviour on separation and threatened to kill her and himself. He was stalking Bethany and she was scared. Four people reported his escalating behavior and threats to the police. This was a HIGH RISK case. Bethany said:
“The amount of times I have spoken to police when he has tried to kill himself, the amount of death threats he’s made to other people – hence the harassment report. He should have been sectioned a long time ago.”
Crowther had been arrested nine times. He was a serial abuser and had abused at least three women. West Yorkshire Police did nothing. A probationer picked up the case and there was with no supervision, no training and no leadership. That's why Bethany Fields was killed, and it is horrific for Bethany’s family and for others to be told any other reason than West Yorkshire police did not do their job and they failed Bethany and many other women.
Fawziyah Javed was 17 weeks pregnant when she was pushed from Arthur’s seat in Edinburgh by her husband Kashif Anwar in 2021. She had reported him to West Yorkshire Police multiple times and told them she was going to separate from him. Separation, pregnancy, coercive control = HIGH Risk. There was no communication with Fawziyah about risk, safety planning or risk management. This violates DASH best practice and is a local police problem and not a DASH issue.
There were many opportunities to save Bethany and Fawziyah. These failures are the same mistakes I’ve seen repeat for many years. And yet there is no accountability. NONE. Leaders are rolled out (if the media press), they say: ‘I’m sorry. We will learn the lessons’ but they never do. They do one training session and tick the box and move on. How is this true learning and changing the culture? There are many ‘hot police forces’ who have uttered these words time and time again, yet they continue fail women with impunity: West Yorkshire; Devon and Cornwall; West Midlands; Greater Manchester; and the Metropolitan Police. How can this be right? This is part of the problem.
BBC Newsnight investigation into at least 7 cases where they failed women, including Fawziyah Javed and Bethany Fields: https://youtu.be/vltPpNiWsBw?si=42NGBsdLxXLkSC7Q
I'm committed to ensuring professionals have the best tools and the best training. That's why I created the DASH and I have spent many years training professionals to the accredited standard and sharing best practice.
Ensure you are trained, the first two classes are free:
FREE training on Coercive Control and Stalking: September 30 and repeats October 1
Preventing Murder and Suicide in Slow Motion™: October 8 and repeats October 9
DASH Risk Model: October 29 and 30 (2.5 hours each day)
DASH Train the Trainer: November 12 and 13 (2.5 hours each day)
Stalking: Dec 4
Coercive Control: December 10 and 11 (2.5 hours each day)
https://bit.ly/LRMasterclassRegistration
Believe women and take them seriously when they report – it costs nothing. The most significant way you can keep women and children safe is to focus on the perpetrators. They ARE the problem. Join up the histories of the dangerous and violent nationally and target them and risk manage them and you will save and change lives. I have been saying this since 2001. It’s on the leaders and the Government to change this and learn the lessons from all the domestic and stalking related murders. Enough is enough. Women deserve better than this.
Laura Richards, September 2 2025