WAVE Trust (Worldwide Alternatives to ViolencE) was formed in 1996 and registered as an international educational charity with the Charity Commission for England and Wales[1] under Number 1080189 in 1999. The charity is dedicated to reducing the key root causes of interpersonal violence: child neglect and maltreatment. The method used is a business strategy approach to identify and then tackle these problems at root cause level.
WAVE’s fundamental message is that most family violence and maltreatment can be prevented by known, economically viable programmes to break damaging family cycles. They say their research identifies and actively promotes UK adoption of global best practice methods and programmes to address violence, e.g. the Nurse-Family Partnership.[2]
WAVE also says extensive research highlights the crucial nature of experience from conception to age 3 in the formation of seriously violent personalities, largely because of the sensitive nature of the infant brain during these formative years. Research also identifies two important early conditions as antidotes to the development of violent personalities: attunement between carers and babies, and the development of empathy in the child.[3]
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WAVE cites the research finding that between birth and age 3 the synapses (or connections) in the infant brain multiply 20 fold, and develop 85% of the human brain (and that 95% of the brain is developed by age 4). This speed of development causes the brain to be acutely sensitive to environmental experience during the first 3 years of life.
The charity’s reports and articles particularly emphasise the importance of warm, nurturing, loving parenting in the first 18 months of life when the emotional brain is largely created, and juxtaposes this with statistics showing that age 0-1 is the peak age for physical abuse in the UK. The people most likely to die a violent death are babies under 1 year old, who are four times more likely to be killed than the average person in England and Wales.[4]
Although there are many causes of violence, WAVE’s research conclusion is that child abuse, neglect and witnessing domestic violence are fundamental contributors to later antisocial, aggressive or violent behaviour because:
WAVE works with police, government departments, academics and other voluntary organisations to improve understanding of the most effective strategies and policies for reducing violence and child maltreatment. The charity also delivers therapeutic programmes for violent offenders in prison and after release.
In 2008 WAVE cooperated with the Centre for Social Justice and the Smith Institute to write and publish the booklet Early Intervention: Good Parents, Great Kids, Better Citizens.[9] This publication calls on all political parties to unite around a long-term commitment to the policy of Early Intervention.
Concerned about the lack of measurable reductions in child maltreatment in the UK over the previous 60 years, in 2009 WAVE created a ‘70/30’ strategy to reduce this by 70% by 2030. This strategy is backed by a number of UK academics, politicians, think tanks and other charities. In 2010, the Liberal Democrats pledged support for WAVE's 70/30 strategy in their pre-election manifesto.[10]
WAVE’s funding comes from national and local government bodies, police forces, foundations and trusts, as well as donations from private individuals.
WAVE’s more recent research, following the publication of Violence and what to do about it, shows that child maltreatment also underlies subsequent problems with mental health, physical health, educational performance, wealth generation and antisocial behaviour.[11]
Baroness Walmsley, Liberal Democrat spokesperson on children, schools and families in the House of Lords
The Rt Hon Iain Duncan Smith, Member of Cabinet, holding portfolio of Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and Former Leader of the UK Conservative Party
General the Lord Ramsbotham, GCB CBE, Crossbench peer in the House of Lords and Vice-Chair of both the All Party Penal Affairs Group and the All Party Parliamentary Group for Learning & Skills in the Criminal Justice System.
Sir Christopher Ball, formerly Warden of Keble College, Oxford and Chancellor of the University of Derby
Sir Richard Bowlby (son of John Bowlby) specialises in the impact of early attachment relationships between parents and their young children
Caroline Clark, historian, mathematician, life coach and homemaker \
George Hosking, founder and Chief Executive Officer, economist, psychologist and clinical criminologist
Ita Walsh, former Trustee, author of WAVE reports Violence and what to do about it and Working together to reduce serious youth violence
Anthoulla Koutsoudi, company secretary, lawyer
Jan Arnow, author of 6 books, including Teaching Peace and Tortured Youth, Children in Violence
Professor Vivette Glover, Professor of Perinatal Psychobiology at Imperial College London
Kate Quigley, Prison Officer advising WAVE on therapeutic work in prisons
Honor Rhodes, OBE, Director of Strategic Development and Projects, Tavistock Centre for Couple Relationships
Kevin McGrath, chartered surveyor, Founder and Chair of McGrath Charitable Trust, entrepreneur and philanthropist
WAVE REPORT 2010: International experience of early intervention for children, young people and their families
Commissioned by C4EO to conduct this review which also formed the basis for their report 'Grasping the nettle: early intervention for children, families and communities'[12]
WAVE REPORT 2005: Violence and what to do about it
The culmination of the charity’s first 9 years of research.
Working Together to Reduce Serious Youth Violence
Report on London Conference in November 2007.
Early Intervention: Good Parents, Great Kids, Better Citizens
WAVE-drafted 2008 joint party booklet.
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