Violence Reduction Unit Year Ending March 2021 Evaluation Report

This document describes a comprehensive evaluation of Violence Reduction Units (VRUs) in the UK, focusing on their effectiveness in reducing serious violence (SV) for the year ending March 2021. VRUs are collaborative, multi-agency initiatives that engage communities and employ evidence-based interventions to tackle violence. The evaluation utilized a mix of qualitative research, quasi-experimental designs, synthetic control methods, and regression analysis to measure the impact of VRUs on various violence-related outcomes. Findings revealed a significant decrease in police-recorded non-injury violence and some reduction in injury violence, with an estimated £385 million in costs avoided and a return on investment of £3.16 for every £1 spent. However, no substantial effects were observed on knife assault hospital admissions or homicides. Challenges faced by VRUs included data consistency, COVID-19 impacts, short-term funding, and difficulties in community engagement. The evaluation suggests that while VRUs show promise in reducing SV, improvements are needed in data monitoring, community involvement, and long-term strategic planning. The document also highlights the importance of community and youth feedback in shaping VRU activities and requests public input to enhance the GOV.UK website, noting that all content is under the Open Government Licence v3.0. **This summary was written by an AI model and therefore should not be considered a definitive summary of the report. If you are aware of inaccuracies, please email evaluation.registry@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.**

Description

• Lead department: Home Office (Home Office)
• Evaluation stage: A complete evaluation report
• Other departments: No other departments listed
• Evaluation types: Impact evaluation; Process evaluation
• Impact methods: Quasi-experimental method
• Quasi-experimental methods: Interrupted time series analysis
• Process methods: Individual interviews
• Grant information: This intervention is not distributing funding via a grant
• Government Major Project information: This intervention is not a major project
• Policies: No policies provided

Event Dates

• Event Name: Publication of final results
• Event date: April 2022

Evaluation Costs

• Cost: Not provided

Evaluation sharing

• Link(s) to published report(s): Yes
• Links to evaluation plans: No link provided
• Links to published evaluations (DEBUGGING): No final report link found.
• Findings: Not provided
• Permission to share confirmed: Yes