Our STRIVE Volunteer team who have been supporting local communities alongside Greater Manchester Police (GMP) have received an esteemed national award.

Yesterday, some of our STRIVE team attended the Home Office for the Lord Ferrers Awards, which recognise outstanding contributions to policing.

They were awarded the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) Volunteer award, which recognised their impressive contribution to policing within Greater Manchester by supporting families where there may be domestic abuse

STRIVE is an initiative designed to reduce police call-outs in partnership with Greater Manchester Police, commissioned by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and funded by The Deputy Mayor of Greater Manchester. We run the STRIVE project across Greater Manchester, working in partnership with the Jigsaw Group for delivery in Tameside and Oldham.

The project recruits local volunteers to attend homes in nine local authority areas and support individuals, couples and families in Greater Manchester – offering early intervention and signposting people to relevant services within the community that may be able to help.

Greater Manchester’s Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime, Bev Hughes, said:

“This award highlights the important role that volunteers play in supporting policing by giving up their free time to make communities safer and enhancing the effectiveness of policing in Greater Manchester. Every person who is a victim of crime will have a different experience and different views about the kind of help and support they need. Our STRIVE volunteer team work exceptionally hard to support victims of crime and this award recognises their contribution.

We are committed to ensuring that there is a strong voice running through the design, delivery and monitoring of the services we commission. This is the key to truly putting victims and survivors of crime at the heart of everything we do.”

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The volunteers signpost victims to relevant support services, share best practice and aim to prevent repeat call outs for domestic incidents.  This service has also been essential in empowering people to make informed choices and building resilient, well-connected communities within Greater Manchester.

In 2018, volunteers visited over 3,000 homes across Greater Manchester, making over 500 referrals to further support services. Our STRIVE service currently has over 140 volunteers, a figure due to rise to over 300 within the next year.

Our CEO,Michelle Hill said:

“We are so proud of and so grateful to all our volunteers who give so much of their time, working alongside Greater Manchester Police, to deliver the STRIVE service. Domestic abuse is a priority area of work for Greater Manchester. Our volunteers are supporting the collective Greater Manchester ambition of improving early intervention approaches to address domestic abuse.

We are passionate about supporting individuals and their families at the earliest possible stage; before they reach a crisis point.  We believe that all Greater Manchester residents should be able to enjoy safe, healthy and happy relationships and are so pleased that our STRIVE service is contributing to that”