Welcome to our new series of micro-blogs. We understand that many of you may be preparing for your DPSI exams, or have recently completed your qualifications and are looking for some additional resources to give you more confidence in your assignments. In these posts, we will highlight the key messages that came out of our live CPD events to bring you closer to content we cover.
Introduction to Domestic Violence
Delivered by Martyn Mordecai, a highly experienced trainer and former police officer. He spent over a decade in the Metropolitan Police in various Operational posts, including the Firearms Unit and Diplomatic Protection.
Martyn has also served as Head of Training for the Police Federation of England and Wales, delivering training to over 2000 individuals. Currently, Martyn works as a trainer for Driver Education, delivering various National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme Courses and Drink/Drive Rehabilitation Courses.
Key messages from this session:
- A domestic crime occurs every MINUTE in England and Wales; 2 million people suffer domestic abuse every year. Around 30 women a week attempt suicide as a result of DV, around 3 per week succeed.
- In 2015, the Government created a new offence of Coercive or Controlling Behaviour. Coercive control is a form of extreme psychological and emotional abuse caused by an ongoing pattern of behaviour. The victim feels isolated, intimidated, and in fear. Examples: Making unreasonable demands, monitoring a person’s whereabouts using GPS and constantly checking up on them, forcing them to commit crime, online and digital abuse etc.
- FGM is mainly practised in at least 29 countries in the western, eastern and north-eastern regions of Africa, in some countries in the Middle East and Asia, as well as among migrants from these areas in Europe, including in the UK.
- Forced marriage is not a problem specific to one country or culture. The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) has handled cases relating to over 100 countries across Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and North America. Most forced marriages involving British girls and women take place abroad.

Want to get involved in the discussion? Do you have your own experience that you’d like to share? Are you unsure whether the procedure followed was correct?
Then join our next session on Criminal Offence Types! The feedback from interpreters is truly excellent – you’ll never have attended a session quite like it!
Our Criminal Offence Workshops are EXCLUSIVELY available to CPD Central Expert Bundle subscribers – click here for more information!
