Aviva’s Reach-Out service, developed in partnership with the North Canterbury Police, recently received the Supreme Award at the national Problem-Oriented Police (POP) Awards. The awards recognise long term sustainable crime prevention and reduction. ReachOut also won the award for excellence in reducing repeat victimisations.
ReachOut was developed when North Canterbury Police recognised a gap in services to men using family violence. Police, government agencies, and non-government agencies worked together to analyse the problem and agreed that a dedicated and proactive response was required. In early 2012 Aviva sought funding to develop and pilot that new response – ReachOut.
ReachOut ensures all men listed in Police family violence reports are contacted and offered support. Currently we employ three dedicated Family Support Workers to work with men in North Canterbury and Christchurch.
An evaluation of reoffending rates in North Canterbury, where the service was first trialled, showed that for men who had engaged with ReachOut, reoffending rates were 1.4%, compared to a reoffending rate of 18% before ReachOut’s introduction – a 91% drop in family violence reoffending.
In October, Aviva and NZ Police will deliver their presentation on ReachOut at the 2016 international POP awards in Arizona, USA.
Huge congratulations to everyone at Aviva and the NZ Police who have contributed to the success of the service and to all of the men who have used it to change their lives for the better.