Safeguarding advisor domestic abuse jobs

DRIVE - IDVA Independent Domestic Violence Advisor (IDVA)

Location: FCWA Offices, 77 Montague Street, Blackpool, FY4 1AT

Salary: 

• £26,500 (FTE unqualified) £21,200 based on 30 hours
• £28,500 (FTE qualified or after 2 years of service) £22,800 based on 30 hours

Hours: 30 hours per week- Over 4 days (Monday–Friday: 9:00am–5:00 pm) Days negotiable

Vacancy Type: 12 Months- continuation is subject to funding

FCWA is an innovative, exciting, and friendly organisation run by a staff team who are passionate about bringing an end to domestic and sexual violence. Our work is holistic and empowering, working alongside survivors to achieve independent lives free from abuse.

The DRIVE IDVA Role and Key Responsibilities

The Independent Domestic Abuse Advocate (IDVA) plays a critical safeguarding role within the Drive Project, providing specialist, survivor-centred advocacy, safety planning and risk management for victims and survivors linked to Drive cases. The role ensures that survivors’ voices, safety, and well-being remain central to system decision-making throughout the Drive intervention.

The role is positioned to work with victims/survivors of domestic abuse; providing specialist support to victims of high-risk, serial, or high-harm domestic abuse perpetrators who are managed by the Drive Project.

DRIVE IDVA’s provide ongoing recovery support to clients for up to 12 months.

• The role requires the successful candidate to;
• Proactively engage with victim/survivors to build bespoke safety plans, including security measures to increase their immediate and long-term safety.
• Act as the crucial link between the perpetrator’s case manager and the victim/survivor to provide current updates and inform disruptive interventions (e.g., police action, bail conditions).
• Conduct regular risk assessments to monitor changes in the perpetrator's behaviour and reduce the risk of harm to the victim/survivor and any children.
• Represent the victim/survivors’ needs in multi-agency meetings (such as MARAC and DAPP), ensuring a coordinated approach between police, social services, housing, and health.
• Serve as the main contact point for victim/survivors to provide consistent support, information and advocacy throughout the intervention process.
• Support victim/survivors through the legal, criminal or civil justice systems. This post will be subject to an enhanced DBS disclosure and clearance.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

• Thorough understanding of domestic abuse and its impact on victims, children, and families.
• Knowledge of risk assessment, safety planning, and risk management within domestic abuse services.
• Understanding of safeguarding responsibilities relating to children and vulnerable adults.
• Experience of providing direct support to victims of domestic abuse or other vulnerable groups.
• Experience working within multi-agency partnerships and legislative frameworks.
• Experience using SafeLives DASH risk assessment tools.
• Ability to manage a complex caseload and prioritise competing demands effectively.
• Strong crisis management and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication, advocacy, negotiation, and interpersonal skills.
• Competent IT skills, including Microsoft Office and electronic case management systems.
• Commitment to equality, diversity, inclusion, and survivor-centred practice.

Desirable Criteria

• IDVA qualification or willingness to work towards accreditation.
• Knowledge of civil and criminal justice remedies available to victims of domestic abuse.
• Experience working with individuals affected by mental health issues, substance misuse, or multiple disadvantage.
• Knowledge of housing, homelessness, welfare benefits, and CAFCASS processes.
• Understanding of Respect Standards and perpetrator intervention programmes.

Benefits:

• Birthday day off
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Regular staff support sessions
• Contributory pension scheme
• Death in Service insurance
• Ongoing training and professional development
• Friendly, values-driven team environment

Additional Information:

This post is subject to an Enhanced DBS disclosure and clearance.

Please note that we reserve the right to withdraw or close this vacancy at any time.

To Apply 

If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for Fylde Coast Womens Aid, please click apply to be redirected to our website to complete your application.

Closing date: 22nd June 2026

Interviews: TBC

Job Title: Pathfinder Independent Domestic Violence Advisor (IDVA)

Position available: 1 full-time position (37.5 hours) based across the Black Country

Salary: £25,282.44 - £28,861.62 (dependent upon qualifications and experience)

Closing date: 24 June 2026

BCWA reserve the right to close this advert before the closing date

All interviews will be held via Microsoft Teams

Is this you?

This is a challenging role that requires empathy, compassion, excellent interpersonal and caseload management skills, and confidence working with partner agencies and advocating for clients.

The Role:

Pathfinder IDVAs will be the main point of contact and support for victim/survivors and their children in the Family Court process, ensuring that they are well-informed and prepared for proceedings, and that they are well-supported throughout. Pathfinder IDVAs will provide detailed reports for the court to ensure that the impact of domestic abuse on the family as a whole and on the children in particular is fully appreciated and understood. Pathfinder IDVAs will be the ‘subject matter experts’ for the Court in relation to domestic abuse, and will offer advice and training to court officers and staff to promote the better understanding of the dynamics of domestic abuse within the Court setting.

The Pathfinder IDVAs will work with people from Sandwell, Walsall and Dudley areas whose cases are being heard in Wolverhampton or Telford Family Court.

If you are self-driven, conscientious, hardworking with lots of ambition we would love to hear from you.

Who are we?

We are SafeLives, the UK-wide charity dedicated to ending domestic abuse, for everyone and for good.

We work with organisations across the UK to transform the response to domestic abuse. We want what you would want for your best friend. We listen to survivors, putting their voices at the heart of our thinking. We look at the whole picture for each individual and family to get the right help at the right time to make families everywhere safe and well. And we challenge perpetrators to change, asking ‘why doesn’t he stop?’ rather than ‘why doesn’t she leave?’ This applies whatever the gender of the victim or perpetrator and whatever the nature of their relationship.

Last year alone, nearly 13,500 professionals received our training. Over 70,000 adults at risk of serious harm or murder and more than 85,000 children received support through dedicated multi-agency support designed by us and delivered with partners. In the last four years, over 2,000 perpetrators have been challenged and supported to change by interventions we created with partners, and that’s just the start.

Together we can end domestic abuse. Forever. For everyone.

About The Drive Partnership 

The Drive Partnership, established by Respect, SafeLives, and Social Finance in 2015, is working to end domestic abuse and protect victim-survivors by disrupting, challenging, and changing the behaviour of those who are causing harm. The Drive Partnership does this through the development of innovative perpetrator responses and advocating for systems and policy change to develop sustainable, national systems that respond more effectively to all perpetrators to increase the safety and freedom of all adult and child victim-survivors. 

Purpose

Following a four-year investment from the Home Office announced in July 2025, the Drive Project – the Drive Partnership’s flagship intervention for high-risk, high-harm and serial perpetrators of domestic abuse – will expand across all areas in England and Wales, with the vast majority of funding flowing directly to local perpetrator services and victim-survivor services by nature of the Drive Project’s model. 

To support the safe implementation of the expansion of the Drive Project intervention, we are seeking a proactive, solution focused individual to work with Drive Partnership and SafeLives, and our delivery sites to ensure our Data Protection policies and practice are up to date, and being consistently adhered to.

This is a new role and will spend two days working to support the Drive Partnership and one day to support SafeLives directly. For more information on SafeLives and the Drive Partnership, please see below.

The role is sensitive by nature and involves dealing with highly confidential and complex information.

Position context

This role sits within the Finance Department and is a critical support function across SafeLives and the Drive Partnership . The Data Protection Officer will be managed by the IT and Compliance Manager and will also work closely with the Head of Operations and Practice Advisors in the Drive Partnership, and , Heads and the Leadership Team to ensure the smooth operating of the business.

Responsibilities

• Data Protection
• Relationship Management
• Administration

Person Specification

Experience

Strong working knowledge of UK GDPR, Data Protection Act 2018, PECR, and ICO guidance and with relevant qualifications. Experience managing data protection compliance within a charity, public sector, or safeguarding‑focused organisation. Understanding of safeguarding principles, particularly relating to domestic abuse, confidentiality, and safe data‑sharing protocols.

Skills

• Ability to interpret legislation and communicate requirements clearly to non‑specialists.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills with a meticulous attention to detail.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to produce policies and understand complex procedures.
• Capacity to manage competing priorities and work independently in a part‑time capacity.
• High levels of integrity, discretion, and professional judgement when handling sensitive and data.
• Knowledge of secure data‑handling technologies and cyber‑security principles

Competencies

• Delivering quality
• Teamwork
• Communication & Relationship management
• Influence
• Innovation and creativity
• Teamwork and collaboration
• Communication and relationship management
• Self-management
• Goal orientation

Equality and Inclusion

SafeLives is committed to providing equal opportunities for all, irrespective of age, disability, race, sex, religion/belief, sexuality, gender identity, marital/civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity and working patterns. We are keen to have staff that appropriately represents all the communities we serve as an organisation.

Lived Experience

We believe there is no ‘them and us’ in domestic abuse, and recognise that applicants may have direct or indirect experience of their own, whether disclosed or not. We are committed to placing lived experience of domestic abuse at the heart of all we do, and colleagues who chose to share their personal expertise can do so openly and with organisational support.

If there is any discussion during the course of the recruitment process regarding a candidate's personal experience of domestic abuse, it will be treated confidentially and will not be shared outside of the interview panel/Human Resources.