Working together for Victim Support 

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Local branch provides advice to victims and witnesses of crime

Wandsworth’s Victim Support office is an instrumental ally in providing emotional and informative advice to victims and witnesses of crime.  Their specially trained staff and volunteers assist police in guiding people through the court process and can report crimes for victims who do not want to make an official police report.

Being a victim or witness of crime can be a traumatic experience and for some the fear of recrimination stops them from reporting the offence to the police. They can be left with psychological or anxiety disorders and may not feel strong enough to contact police or seek counselling to help them overcome their ordeal.

Victim Support Wandsworth is a charity and is entirely independent of the police. Victim Support Wandsworth recognises that meeting the needs of victims and witnesses in Wandsworth requires a joined up approach and therefore it works with other agencies including the police to ensure that victims and witnesses receive the support and assistance they require.

Chief Supt. Joe Royle said: “Working with our partners is essential to reduce the fear of crime and encourage victims and witnesses that by coming forward they can help police bring criminals to justice.  In terms of Victim Support, our separate aims complement each other well in our mission to make the borough a safer place.”

The Wandsworth police Victim & Support unit is based in Tooting and includes staff from the Crown Prosecution Service, Witness Services and a trained counsellor from Victim Support.  Its multi agency approach has received a high satisfaction rate from the victims and witnesses they have cared for. 

Their involvement with victims begins after suspects have been charged with the exception of domestic violence, which starts from pre-charge as quite often a number of complications and personal issues need to be addressed.

Their objective is to get victims and witnesses to court and do what possible to accommodate their needs and concerns.  They organise pre-court visits for victims and witnesses for them to see and learn what will happen at trial.

This differs from Victim Support’s objective, which is to explain the options available, and support victims and witnesses with their chosen route. This is why their role at the Witness Care unit is so effective as it offers a very separate service to what the police offer.

Child victims and witnesses along with adult victims of sexual assault can now appear via a video-link to give evidence at court, while a ‘special measures’ order can be made by the court to protect vulnerable or intimidated witnesses; be it a video-link or behind a screen where they can be seen only by the judge, jury and lawyers.

Claire Reidy, the manager of the Victim & Witness unit, said, “It is common practice for victims to be mentored by a member of Victim Support who offers one-to-one mentoring and can tell them about the realities of a court trial, rather than the illusion presented on television.  A lot of victims and witnesses benefit from pre-trial sittings where all issues are exposed and dealt with before trial.

“It can be hard to get domestic violence victims to court but once there we provide them with professional support and guidance and inform them of the support services they can turn to once proceedings conclude.  A lot of our cases are of school age and they are often scared of retribution from their peers and fear for their safety leads to parents withdrawing the allegation.”

Wandsworth police recently met with local schools, youth support groups, youth offending groups, community outreach organisers and the council to come up with a strategy to encourage school-age victims to report offences to police.

September 25, 2006