In July 2025, the Government announced £53million of funding for the rollout of the evidence-based Drive Project across England and Wales
This was part of the Government’s commitment to tackling perpetrators of domestic abuse.
Cleveland was identified as part of phase one of the Drive roll-out.
The Drive Project is an evaluated and evidence-based, multi-agency case management
approach for high-risk, high-harm, serial domestic abuse perpetrators.
It uses multi-agency engagement to undertake intensive monitoring, disruption tactics and behavioural interventions. This is in order to prevent perpetrators from re-offending and to keep victims (and their children) safe from harm.
Three Ways of working
The project works in three ways to address the behaviour of perpetrators as follows:
- Behaviour change – one-to-one interventions with the perpetrator.
- Support interventions – such as addressing substance misuse or mental health issues.
- Disruption activity – putting barriers in place to prevent further abuse. It also involves working with other agencies to remove a perpetrator from a property they share with the victim.
Perpetrators deemed eligible for the Drive Project will have a dedicated case manager. The manager will work to address their behaviour.
Case managers work one-to-one with perpetrators for up to 12 months, to challenge the beliefs and behaviours, which contribute towards their abuse.
Managers will also work in partnership with other services to remove the opportunities
for abuse. These services can include the police, social services, and charities working in the
community.
Grants process
The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) launched a competitive grants’ process for the case management element of Cleveland DRIVE on 24 October 2025.
This involved an application review meeting made up of the OPCC, Cleveland Police, Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council and a member of the national Drive team.
Cranstoun was identified as the successful applicant. It will be awarded funding as the case management delivery partner for Cleveland Drive from 1 March 2026 to 31 March 2027. Details of funding are as follows:
- 2025/26 – up to £70,938.75
- 2026/27 – up to £285,313
Therefore, Cranstoun will be awarded up to £356,251.751 between March 2026 and 31 March 2027. This is to deliver the case management element of DRIVE (high risk, high harm domestic abuse perpetrator case management approach) in Cleveland.