In England, the government selected 12 integrated care boards (ICBs), NHS bodies that plan local services, to connect patients disclosing domestic abuse or sexual violence at general practitioner (GP) practices with specialist support.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced Oct. 23 that the boards are due to receive up to £34,417,204 over three years, covering 2026-27 through 2028-29. The boards were selected in September, while the program’s phased rollout began in April 2026.
Patients may tell any staff member at a participating practice about abuse they are experiencing or have experienced. The practice can refer them to a specialist worker only with their agreement. The worker can coordinate follow-up, assess risks, help the patient plan for safety and connect them with local services.
Ed Garratt, chief executive of NHS Norfolk and Suffolk Integrated Care Board, said GP practices may already be places people trust. “For many people, their GP practice is somewhere they already have a relationship of trust.”
A joint bid from Coventry and Warwickshire and Herefordshire and Worcestershire has the largest listed allocation, £6,672,213. DHSC’s funding table does not break that total down between the two boards.
DHSC is providing a separate £15 million over three years to support specialist services across all ICBs. The department says those allocations reflect the average number of patients registered at GP practices from April to July 2026.
The government’s strategy targets coverage across England by 2029. It says domestic abuse, stalking and sexual assault together affected 5.1 million victims in the year ending March 2025.
DHSC has not named the dates when individual practices will begin taking referrals. NHS Norfolk and Suffolk Integrated Care Board said local work was in the planning and mobilization stage and estimated that first-phase services would begin operating nationally in February or March 2027.
