A domestic homicide review (DHR) is carried out to make sure lessons are learned when a person has been killed as a result of domestic violence (domestic homicide).

In order for these lessons to be learned as widely and thoroughly as possible, professionals need to understand fully what happened in each homicide, and most importantly, to identify what needs to change in order to reduce the risk of such tragedies happening in the future.

There is guidance from the Home Office that community safety partnerships have to follow when conducting a review.

The findings are then published on a public website and logged with the Home Office.

The purpose of a DHR is to:

  • establish what lessons are to be learned from the domestic homicide regarding the way in which local professionals and organisations work individually and together to safeguard victims;
  • identify clearly what those lessons are both within and between agencies, how and within what timescales they will be acted on, and what is expected to change as a result;
  • apply these lessons to service responses including changes to inform national and local policies and procedures as appropriate;
  • prevent domestic violence and homicide and improve service responses for all domestic violence and abuse victims and their children by developing a co-ordinated multi-agency approach to ensure that domestic abuse is identified and responded to effectively at the earliest opportunity;
  • contribute to a better understanding of the nature of domestic violence and abuse; and
  • highlight good practice.

Completed domestic homicide reviews in Merton

Adela January 2023

Mrs A October 2015

Contact us

Safer Merton
Merton Council
Civic Centre
London Road
Morden 
SM4 5DX
Telephone: 020 8545 4146 
Email: safer.merton@merton.gov.uk