Steve Baker
Steve served with Northumbria Police for 30 years. Throughout his distinguished career, he held a variety of specialist roles, including the force lead for Counter Terrorism, where he worked to safeguard vulnerable individuals from radicalisation. He also led on mental health for 5 years, shaping responses to complex needs within policing.
Latterly, Steve was seconded to the College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs’ Council, where he served as the national Mental Health Co-ordinator where he contributed to strategic developments and national policy.
Steve now oversees the national roll-out of Respond – a multi-agency crisis awareness training programme. He has delivered accredited courses and facilitated training across partnerships, as well as organised and hosted national conferences focused on mental health and crisis response.
He is particularly passionate about improving understanding of the intersections between domestic abuse, mental health, and suicide. Steve is committed to developing more effective, compassionate approaches to support individuals and prevent harm.
Dr Katy Brookfield
Katy is an Assistant Professor of Criminology at the University of Nottingham. Her research primarily focusses on women’s experiences of technology-facilitated domestic abuse, with a specific interest in how being under digital surveillance shapes women’s interactions with services. Katy is further involved in projects looking at women’s experiences of gambling related domestic abuse and housing precarity, and safeguarding in end-of-life marriage. Alongside her research, Katy teaches undergraduate courses at the University of Nottingham, providing personal tutoring and supervising dissertation students. Prior to re-entering academia, Katy worked for a Higher Education provider improving pathways to support for student survivors of domestic and sexual abuse.
Katy has extensive experience working with specialist charities and organisations and is happy to receive speaking and collaboration requests. You can read more about Katy and her work, and find her contact details HERE.
Gary Calvert
Gary is a former Chief Police Officer with 30 years’ experience in the strategic and operational delivery of victim-focused policing. He developed expertise in crime investigation, serving in senior detective roles, including as SIO on serious offences such as homicide.He led an initiative tackling VAWG in the night-time economy. This work, now known as Operation Cloak, reduced related crimes and increased awareness among local businesses. In January 2023, it was highlighted in the House of Commons as an exemplar of protecting vulnerable people.
Since retiring in 2016, Gary took up two associate roles: (i) HMICFRS, where he supervised inspections of police forces in England and Wales, focussing on domestic abuse investigations and victim care, and; (ii) the College of Policing (where he has worked for nearly 9 years) and continues to deliver investigation training on the Executive Leadership Programme for future chief officers.
Karen Cowe
Karen is an experienced safeguarding and domestic abuse specialist with a career spanning almost 40 years in public protection. She began working for Northumbria Police in 1985, gaining extensive experience across roles in the Intelligence Unit, Crime Desk, Warrants and Protection, and the Vulnerable Person Unit. These early positions shaped her commitment to supporting vulnerable people and improving multi‑agency responses to domestic abuse.
Karen played a key role in the development and implementation of both Multi‑Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) and Multi‑Agency Risk Assessment Conferences (MARAC) across Sunderland, South Tyneside and Gateshead. She was instrumental in establishing the systems, policies, and procedures that underpin these frameworks, working closely with CAADA (now SafeLives), Probation, and the Home Office to embed consistent safeguarding practice.
As MARAC Coordinator, Karen built strong partnerships with statutory and voluntary agencies and championed best practice to ensure victims received coordinated and effective support. She worked with organisations including Karma Nirvana, Wearside Women in Need, Safer Families, and Options to strengthen responses for minority communities.
Karen later joined Victims First Northumbria (Victim Support Service) and trained as a Restorative Justice Facilitator before moving into the Multi‑Agency Tasking and Coordinating (MATAC) team, supporting high‑risk victims and addressing the most harmful and serial domestic abuse perpetrators. Her depth of experience and unwavering commitment to victim safety continue to shape her work with Addressing Domestic Abuse.
Cath Easton
Cath is a former Detective Constable with extensive operational expertise in Public Protection and Safeguarding, particularly in the investigation, prosecution, and safeguarding of domestic abuse cases. Her academic background complements her frontline experience, allowing her to bring fresh insight and evidence-based approaches to specialist policing roles.
As a qualified police trainer, assessor, and verifier, Cath has designed and delivered training programmes aligned with College of Policing standards. Her work has supported police forces, partner agencies, and organisations across the voluntary and third sectors. She ensured the integrity and authenticity of advanced police training & qualifications, contributing to the professional development of officers — a contribution recognised both locally and nationally.
Cath is also an Associate Lecturer at the University of Sunderland, where she teaches modules focused on policing within her specialist areas. Her work continues to shape the next generation of professionals committed to protecting the most vulnerable in society.
Becky Elton
Becky has been working in the housing and homelessness sector since 2007, helping to create real change for people with complex needs. Over the years, she has taken on a range of roles in service delivery, leadership, and strategy, always focused on making services more impactful.
Passionate about the power of collaboration, she helps organisations thrive, tackling homelessness, improving and driving innovation in the voluntary and public sector. She has led high-performing teams, helped local authorities refine, improve and focus their offer to people in need of supported accommodation, reviewed homelessness functions and supported organizations to secure vital contracts.
Before taking the step in to consultancy, Becky worked at Executive level in large charities working with people experiencing homelessness, addiction and exploitation including Depaul UK and Changing Lives. In these roles she led operations and business development, leading the growth and improvement of services, supporting teams, building strategic relationships and influencing externally.
With an MSc in Systems Thinking in Practice, Becky is keen to find smarter ways to create change — ‘doing better things’ as well as ‘doing things better’.
Rebecca Fraser
Rebecca has worked for the past decade in the development and implementation of strategic campaigns and thought leadership across various sectors including social housing, domestic abuse, international social services, and education. As an engagement manager at the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), she is focused on building relationships with employers to support CIH stay responsive to the profession and ensure that those working in housing are valued for their knowledge and skills.
Rebecca has worked alongside Addressing Domestic Abuse since the early days, leading on the development of brand identity, direction and strategy, and engaging senior stakeholders to further the work of ADA in the social housing sector. She is delighted to continue her association with ADA.
Alexandra Gibson
Alex is the Lead Associate at Addressing Domestic Abuse (ADA) and Content and Production Manager at the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH), where she delivers training to housing associations and homelessness charities.
She leads both the Housing Community Summit, a national collaboration between CIH and the National Housing Federation, and CIH’s UK‑wide events programme, and was recognised as one of Housing Today’s Top 30 Housing Champions in 2025. With more than nine years’ experience in policy, public affairs and events, she previously served as Policy Manager for Victims’ Services at the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner’s Office (2018–19), and has worked as a policy analyst and domestic abuse researcher in housing associations and for the Domestic Abuse Housing Alliance. Alex also volunteers as a direct service delivery volunteer with Rape Crisis and as an emergency response officer with the British Red Cross
Professor Geetanjali Gangoli
Geetanjali is Head of Department. Sociology, and a member of the Centre for Research in Violence and Abuse, Durham University. Her particular specialism is addressing the intersecting roles of class, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and disability in terms of the perpetuation, the experience and prevention, of violence and abuse. She has also worked on social movement responses to violence and abuse in the UK and internationally. She has developed innovative and highly rated training on preventing and addressing VAWG in racially minoritised communities, including domestic & sexual abuse, crimes in the name of honour, and forced marriage.
Her work is interdisciplinary, drawing on, and contributing to the disciplines of sociology, social work, feminist gender studies, legal and policy studies. Theoretical contributions include: intersectional inequalities, conceptual understanding of Indian feminist responses to gender-based violence, and understanding the meaning of women’s violence against women. She is concerned with the implications for practice, and the intersections between policy and practice.
Victoria Hall
Victoria is a leading figure in private sector housing enforcement and currently manages multidisciplinary teams at Durham County Council to improve housing standards and tenant welfare. She champions fairness, transparency, and continuous improvement in housing services. In 2017 she led a national initiative for the Domestic Abuse Housing Alliance to raise awareness of domestic abuse in the private rented sector, developing guidance and training programmes that were launched through major landlord associations.
She was successful in building collaboration and launching training through ARLA, NLA/RLA (now known as NRLA). She produced a guidance document for landlords and managing agents which was launched during the 2 year project.
Dr Yoric Irving-Clarke
Yoric has worked in housing for over 25 years in a variety of front-line, managerial and strategic roles for both local authorities and housing associations. With a background in homelessness and supported housing, he now works across supported and general needs policy, strategy and public affairs at Midland Heart.
His PhD explored the history of supported housing in England, with a particular focus on the development and implementation of the Supporting People programme between 2003 and 2010. He has taught housing policy and practice, plus political philosophy to both under-, and post-graduate students. His publications include: (i) three academic textbooks: (a) Supported housing: Past, present and future; (b) Housing philosophy: Applying concepts to policy, and (c) Housing and domestic abuse: Policy into practice, and; (ii) presentations of several academic papers.
Sue Kellie
Sue brings over 20 years of senior leadership, knowledge, passion, and expertise to ADA. As former Therapeutic Practitioner, Head of Service, Director, Strategic Partnerships Lead, and Freelanced Consultant, she has a particular focus in the areas of homelessness, mental health and addiction. She brings the unique insight of what it takes to deliver award winning services on the ground that drive innovative solutions to tackling health inequalities complimented with the commercial acumen as a Business Development Professional and skilled Project Manager.
Sue has successfully attracted significant ICB and Local Authority investment on a national scale through direct awards and contractual opportunities in mental health, homelessness, learning disability and complex needs services across the country.
Stephanie Morphew
Stephanie is the Policy Lead for Homelessness, Domestic Abuse, and Supported Housing at the Chartered Institute of Housing, the home of professional standards for housing. She works to influence national strategies and support frontline services, driving evidence-based policy to ensure everyone has access to a safe and affordable home. Stephanie sits on the Southeast Homeless Forum Executive and previously led research on the experiences of social housing residents, the cost of living crisis, and the implications of new technologies in the housing sector.
Dr Claire Ogah
Claire is an accomplished PhD researcher, educator, and third-sector project manager with over a decade of management experience. Her doctoral research, an ethnographic study in a developing country, explored how health professionals address domestic violence, offering critical insights for improving healthcare support for survivors.
Passionate about tackling inequality, she has extensive experience leading sustainable community projects in the food poverty sector, expanding volunteer networks, and fostering collaboration to support disadvantaged women, children, and vulnerable communities.
Alongside her academic and professional work, Claire is a published digital artist, cultural storyteller, and spoken word activist whose creative practice amplifies marginalised voices and celebrates heritage, diversity, and inclusion. Her ability to secure funding and build strong partnerships reflects her dedication, creativity, and commitment to social change through research, community engagement, and art.
Dr Nicole Renehan
Nicole is an Assistant Professor in Criminology in the Department of Sociology, Durham University.
Nicole researches in the area of domestic abuse, Neurodiversity and Interventions, and has a practice background in domestic abuse within a multi-agency, child protection setting. Nicole is currently developing a neurodiversity practitioner toolkit to support neurodivergent clients who access domestic abuse perpetrator interventions (in collaboration with Community Justice Scotland, Neurodiverse Connection, Probation North East and Respect).
She also delivers training on the intersection of domestic abuse and neurodivergence, and the implications for working with this client group.
Dr Nikki Rutter
Nikki is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at Durham University, a registered social worker, and child and family safeguarding specialist. Nikki has practise experience in women’s refuges, child safeguarding, and children with disabilities teams. Nikki has published extensively on the topic of child and adolescent to parent violence and abuse (CAPVA). She has also been recognised as an international leader in CAPVA, after receiving the European Society of Criminology’s Young European Criminologist of the Year 2025 award, due to her CAPVA expertise.
As an applied social work researcher, Nikki has a commitment to research, teaching and practise which has everyday relevance to those working in the field, or experiencing family harm in their everyday lives. Using the findings of her research, Nikki has developed CPD, training, and completed programme evaluations on the topic of both CAPVA, and improving professional responses to children’s disclosures of domestic abuse.
Grace Wilson
Grace studied criminology at Durham University, with a particular focus on domestic abuse and stalking and is a passionate advocate for social change.
She began her career in the VAWG sector at the Alice Ruggles Trust where she initially served as Social Media Coordinator. Her work quickly evolved to include graphic designing and she began managing the Trust’s Durham Schools’ Project which focused on educating young people about how to recognise and respond to stalking. In early 2025, Grace was made National Coordinator for the Schools’ Project, expanding the Trusts’ impact by overseeing the delivery of vital stalking awareness education across the UK.
Grace is now embarking on a new professional chapter at Waythrough, where she will be supporting families affected by addiction and alcoholism.