Who we are
The Wales Violence Prevention Unit was established through funding from the Home Office in 2019. The core team comprises members from police forces, the Police and Crime Commissioner, Public Health Wales, Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS), Home Office Immigration and the voluntary sector.
We take a public health approach to preventing violence. This means that we seek to understand the causes of violence based on evidence. We use this evidence to develop interventions focused on the underlying causes of violence. We properly evaluate these interventions before scaling up each one to help more people and communities across Wales. Through this approach we aim to develop a whole system response to the prevention of violence.
Who’s involved
Core Members
Daniel Jones, Interim Head of the Violence Prevention Unit
Daniel joins the Violence Prevention Unit from the South Wales Police and Crime Commissioner’s Office, where he was Head of Partnerships.
Gemma Woolfe, South Wales Serious Violence Prevention Coordinator
Gemma is seconded to the Violence Prevention Unit from the South Wales Police and Crime Commissioner's Office as the Serious Violence Prevention Coordinator.
Detective Chief Inspector Jason Herbert
Jason is seconded to the Violence Prevention Unit as our Police Lead. Prior to moving into Unit, Jason was the Head of Custody Services in South Wales Police.
Lara Snowdon, Public Health Lead, Public Health Wales
Lara's role involves strategic leadership, research, and evaluation as we develop our public health approach to violence prevention for Wales.
Emma Barton, Violence Prevention Outcomes Manager, Public Health Wales
Emma joins the Violence Prevention Unit from Public Health Wales, where she led a research team to deliver a number of research and evaluation projects.
Dr Alex Walker, Violence Prevention Outcomes Officer
Alex is the evaluation lead for the Violence Prevention Unit, and has also conducted valuable research, including research on the experiences of bystanders to domestic violence during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bryony Parry, Communications Lead
Bryony is responsible for all internal and external communication activity for the Violence Prevention Unit.
Lauren Hopkins, Communications Support
Lauren joined the team last year, primarily supporting the Violence Prevention Unit communications and engagement for the Wales Without Violence Framework.