Meet Tanya
About me
I’m Tanya Pellew and work at Wokingham Borough Council as a Housing and Domestic Abuse Specialist. My role is to support the homelessness team in managing cases presented as homeless as a result of people fleeing domestic abuse. It is paramount our victim survivors are made aware of their rights if they are fleeing domestic abuse and the relevant support which is available to them.
Anyone can be a victim survivor regardless of their age, race, gender, sexual preference, faith, disability or financial status. It is estimated that 1 in 10 of our residents will be affected by domestic abuse each year.
How I help domestic abuse victim survivors
I help the homelessness officers and wider teams within the council to support victim survivors of domestic abuse, which includes people who have either fled their homes or wishing to do so. This may include looking for refuge provisions, liaising with and or attending emergency strategy meetings with external agencies and ensuring all relevant support and robust safety plans are in place to protect any victim survivors and their children.
I oversee DASH (Domestic Abuse Stalking and Honour-based violence) risk assessments completed by the homelessness officers and identify and report high risk cases to MARAC (Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference). MARAC is a monthly meeting which I attend and is chaired by the local police and has representatives from housing, health and domestic abuse present. If it is agreed an individual is at risk, we work together to implement a safety plan to protect the victim survivor and their children.
Recently, I have co-written a domestic abuse tenancy Policy for residents and tenants within the borough, as well as a domestic abuse procedure for all staff to adhere, following concerns or disclosures of domestic abuse. This will ensure anyone who approaches us with concerns of domestic abuse, can expect the same high-level response to ensure support and safety for them and their children.
I monitor statistics to understand the demographics and situations of residents approaching us due to fleeing domestic abuse as well people who may approach us for different reasons who may disclose concerns at a later date.
I work very closely with the borough’s commissioned domestic abuse service Cranstoun and collaborate with external agencies to provide successful partnerships. These include attending domestic abuse networking groups and partnership boards. This supports the council in understanding barriers of those disclosing, support is available to those who recognise concerns within their behaviour, in turn, providing a holistic approach and inclusivity.
Contact us today if you need help
Support is available to ALL domestic abuse victims and survivors in Wokingham Borough.
Visit our website to find:
Call the Cranstoun domestic abuse helpline on (0118) 402 1921.
In an emergency, call the police on 999.