What is a Domestic Abuse Related Death Review?
The Keeping Bristol Safe Partnership will carry out a Domestic Abuse Related Death Review (DARDR), formerly known as a Domestic Homicide Review (DHR), when the death of a person aged 16 or over has, or appears to have, resulted from domestic abuse towards the person. It is held with a view to identifying the lessons to be learned from the death.
Domestic Abuse Related Death Reviews, formerly known as Domestic Homicide Reviews were established on a statutory basis under the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act (2004) and amended by the section 19 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024. The Home Office have published Domestic Abuse Related Death Review: Statutory Guidance (2026).
The DARDR process
The DARDR will look at the circumstances that led to the death. This will help professionals understand what happened and what needs to change to reduce the risk of something like this happening again. The DARDR is not an enquiry of who is culpable, this is for the coroner to decide.
The DARDR will be carried out by a review panel made up of people from the Keeping Bristol Safe Partnership. This includes the police, domestic abuse specialist services, health services, fire service, probation services, and specialist agencies. The panel is led by an independent chair. The panel will look at each agency’s involvement in the case and might speak to family, friends and work colleagues of the victim. They will then make recommendations to improve the response to domestic violence in the future.
AAFDA (Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse) have created a short film Approaching a Domestic Homicide Review to outline the purpose of a DHR and to inspire those taking part in DHRs to become open to learning. This leads to a meaningful review where lessons are learnt and responses can be improved for the future.
Request a DARDR
If you believe that a case meets the criteria for DARDR, please complete the DARDR Scoping Review Request Form and email to KBSP.statutoryreviews@bristol.gov.uk. You will need to demonstrate how the criteria are fulfilled and provide as much information as possible to support this.
Before submitting the referral, please discuss this with your agency representative on the KBSP SAR/DARDR subgroup. If you are unsure who your representative is, or if you need any other advice in relation to the referral, please contact KBSP.statutoryreviews@bristol.gov.uk.
The KBSP Statutory Review Local Protocol and Guidance sets out the processes for DARDRs in Bristol.
National Reviews
The Home Office requires that local areas publish anonymised reports and findings from DARDRs which can be found in the Domestic Homicide Review library.
Previous DARDRs/DHRs
Any reviews older than five years can be found in the archive below. Anything older than ten years is kept on file by the KBSP Business Unit and can be accessed upon request.