Essex Police has become one of the best performing forces in the country for disclosing information under Clare's Law.

Clare's Law, launched in March 2014, was named after Clare Woods who was killed by her ex-partner in 2009.

The law provides a "right to ask" the police about any previous history of violence or abuse your partner might have.

It also offers the "right to know," giving police and other agencies a duty to inform someone whose partner has previously committed violence which could pose a risk.

Clare's Law data from 2017 to 2023 showed that Essex Police disclosed information in just 9% of "right to ask" applications and 13% of "right to know" applications.

Comparatively, forces in Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk disclosed information in at least 60% of "right to know" applications.

After Essex Police's review of the process almost two years ago, a new Domestic Abuse Review Team was put in place. 

The team of more than 20 officers, between August 2023 and June 2024, have made 830 disclosures - 66% of the applications processed. 

Detective Superintendent Matt Cornish, the force's lead for domestic abuse, said: "In January 2023 we undertook a major review of our response to domestic abuse in Essex with an aim of implementing the College of Policing-approved Domestic Abuse Risk Assessment (DARA), and continue to improve our response to DA victims and the management of DA perpetrators

"As a part of this project, we updated our approach to Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS) disclosures; ensuring adherence to the new Home Office guidance, seeking to improve both the number of disclosures made and enhancing the content of those disclosures.

"This ensures we are now reaching even more potential victims of DA and giving them the information, they need to make an informed decision."

In the last year, Essex Police have seen around 1,800 fewer reports of domestic abuse and around 1,000 fewer repeat victims.

Detective Superintendent Cornish added: "It's not enough just to respond to incidents and investigate offences, we want to prevent them from happening.

"Our award-winning #Reflect campaign puts the focus on the perpetrator. It says to them 'recognise your behaviour and seek help'.

"And we've worked with the Change Project who then help those people to change that behaviour.

"There are not many, if any, other domestic abuse campaigns which take this approach and we've seen that it works.

"Since it started, we've seen 700 people make contact with the Change Project. That's incredible and it really could save lives."

If you've entered a relationship with someone and you feel unsure, Clare's Law gives any member of the public the right to ask the police if their partner may pose a risk to them.

For more information about Clare's Law and how to make an application visit Essex Police's domestic violence disclosure scheme page.