"Professional and survivor perspectives on a co-located early domestic abuse intervention in a police station: a qualitative study" by Eve Wang
Prior to the establishment of Coventry HDRC, the Council's Public Health team at Coventry City Council commissioned an early intervention to support people who had contacted Coventry police about experiencing domestic abuse. Two domestic abuse support workers from Coventry Haven Women's Aid and one support worker from Panahghar were placed in a police station in Coventry to offer immediate support. The research project was designed in 2021 and carried out in 2022 by HDRC’s Research Assistant Eve Wang. Eve was supported by Maxine Whelan, Assistant Professor at Coventry University and collaborator of the HDRC since its establishment in 2022.
A report of the intervention was created to show what worked well and where there were areas for improvement of the project. These findings were shared with the government and charities that support people affected by domestic abuse in the West Midlands. Coventry Haven Women’s Aids incorporated findings of the report into a funding bid to submit to the National Lotteries, which has been successful. This meant that the project could continue from 2025 to 2028, with the service expanding into Solihull.
Thanks to Coventry HDRC, who extended Eve Wang's employment contract in 2023, the results of the evaluation were written up in a research paper, that was published in 2025, which is a big success. The evaluation shows the benefits of including thorough research in service evaluations by a local council. The challenges it presented match the priorities of Coventry HDRC, such as encouraging a research culture across organisations from different sectors. The HDRC further enabled Eve to promote her work in the form of poster exhibitions, in a booklet, and presentations at West Midlands events, such as the Public Health Research for Health Consortium, and other HDRC events.
This example clearly shows the route to interventions, reports, publications, and impact. Congratulations to Eve and Maxine on their success! Read the full post-print provided by Coventry University’s Repository.