IDAS is committed to delivering high quality support and accommodation for victims and survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence. Our range of services means that we can support every survivor of abuse in addition to us offering women only refuges and groups.
We are affiliated to Women’s Aid Federation and we hold their national standard award which provides evidence of the quality of our refuges and dispersed accommodation.
Our domestic abuse community services have achieved Safe Lives Leading Lights standards and our sexual violence services have gained Lime Culture accreditation. In 2021 we achieved Helplines Partnership Standards for our helpline delivery in Sheffield.
As well as these awards which are made by external, independent organisations, we have also developed a Survivors’ Advisory Board which provides additional oversight of and input into our services.
Safeguarding
We provide an environment that is safe and supportive and promotes the welfare of the people who use our services, as well as our staff and volunteers. We have extensive policies that set out our approach and commitment to safeguarding and we work in partnership with other agencies to ensure there is a coordinated response to safeguarding vulnerable adults, children, and young people. All staff and volunteers receive comprehensive training, ongoing support and supervision to enable them to recognise abuse and respond appropriately and with confidence.
Women’s Aid
The Women’s Aid National Quality Standards were developed in response to the needs of Women’s Aid members. They demonstrate the unique quality of dedicated specialist services for women and child survivors. The Standards support dedicated specialist domestic abuse services by providing a set of criteria against which they can evidence their quality.
Organisations applying for the quality mark must prove themselves against criteria that promote positive survivor outcomes such as:
physical and emotional recovery
rights and access
safety and dignity
sustainability and autonomy
Leading Lights
SafeLives Leading Lights is the mark of quality for domestic abuse services and is increasingly being recognised by commissioners and funders across the UK.
The Leading Lights accreditation programme offers services, partner agencies and commissioners a set of standards for supporting victims of domestic abuse. The standards are split into four main sections:
service provision
multi-agency working
human resources
Governance
Together, these sections represent practice that is effective, sustainable and – above all – safe.
“Staff are committed to empowering their clients and are creative in how they work with clients at different stages.” Safe Lives
Lime Culture
Lime culture is the independent accreditation for Supporting Male Victims / Survivors and Independent Sexual Violence Adviser (ISVA) services. This accreditation is used for other sexual violence support agencies e.g. SARCS (Sexual Assault Referral Centres), private provider organisations and services within an organisation such as the NHS, Police or Local Authority. The standards are split into four main sections, which organisations must demonstrate they meet:
Leadership and Governance
Access and Engagement
Service Delivery
Outcomes and Evaluation
“The ISVA provision provided by IDAS is very highly regarded by other professionals and agencies. The feedback from stakeholders interviewed as part of the review was extremely positive, reporting that the ISVA service provides access to a safe, effective and accessible service for victims/survivors of sexual violence.” Lime Culture
Helpline Standards
Helplines Partnerships developed the quality standard specifically for the helpline sector to accredit service delivery and recognise best practice. Helplines Partnership (HLP) is the membership body for organisations that provide helpline services via phone and multi-channel methods in the UK, Republic of Ireland and internationally The Helplines Standard identifies the practices that enable an organisation to deliver a helpline service which is consistent, relevant to the needs of its stakeholders and effective in what it is trying to achieve.
The assessment process comprises:
reviewing a comprehensive portfolio of documentary evidence produced by the helpline supplemented by follow-up telephone interviews
making sample contacts to the helpline
undertaking remote assessment activity which includes observation of contacts being handled by helpline workers
conducting telephone interviews with commissioners/funders, key individuals responsible for information/marketing and delivery partners
“It was evident that the helpline staff were highly experienced in their roles. They consistently displayed a comprehensive range of appropriate contact handling behaviours and demonstrated high levels of knowledge and expertise. Their dedication and commitment to offering a high quality service was clearly evident”
