Steps to Safety, a domestic abuse sexual violence referral service, is to be established across all integrated care boards by 2029. Referring patients who are experiencing domestic violence will now be core business for general practice.

In support and to ensure assimilation of the programme, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) recently announced that it will be tendering for a national partner to provide centralised assistance to integrated care boards, working alongside the government department, NHS bodies, and domestic abuse organisations.

The DHSC announcement and subsequent funding is vital to the success of Steps to Safety.

VISION Director and University of Bristol Professor in Primary Care, Gene Feder, has written an opinion piece for the BMJ, welcoming the government’s commitment to improve how domestic abuse is handled by the healthcare system. With his fellow academic and GP co-authors, Lucy Potter and Kate Pitt, they urge for programme evidence-based decisions alongside relational, integrated care and proactive outreach.

To download the opinion piece: Steps to Safety will help GPs connect patients with domestic abuse support

To cite: BMJ 2026;395:e101285

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