How far has multi-agency policing travelled in 30 years? Reflecting on progress in the context of ‘policing’ domestic abuse in England and Wales

This article considers how far multi-agency policing has travelled in England and Wales. As we move into the fourth decade of investment in the multi-agency approach to policing a plethora of crime and victimisation problems, it is appropriate for us to reflect on progress. Drawing on the broader literature, state strategies promoting multi-agency and partnership working and reflecting on research and evaluations of multi-agency partnerships to tackle domestic abuse, the article raises some prickly questions about our continued faith in the multi-agency approach to reduce domestic abuse, protect and support survivors and hold perpetrators to account. The paper begins by offering an outline of the significant shift in policing that ushered in an era of crime prevention and community safety. A critical review then unfolds drilling into progress and prospects in the context of multi-agency policing of domestic abuse contemporarily. The article closes by posing further questions about the present climate and the longer-term direction for multi-agency and partnership working in the context of policing domestic abuse.