Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Philip Seccombe is commissioning a range of services to help local victims of crime, sexual abuse and violence, child sexual exploitation to help them:-
- Cope with the impact of crime; and;
- Recover from the harm they have experienced.
These services will be free to all who need them, and available equitably to those who report, and choose not to report, a crime to the police.
A full needs assessment was carried out, which included consultation with victims of crime and key partner organisations. As a result of this consultation, local victims have told us that:-
- Engagement with support services varies in length for different need groups, so both brief and long-term interventions are needed – but support should not be time limited;
- Victims want a choice of support types and methods to help them cope and recover, including specialist therapy;
- People wanted a range and choice of ways to access support (including face to face, by telephone, online, self-serve).
Following on from this, the Office of the PCC has developed a set of key principles, which will underpin how support services are commissioned. We are now seeking views and feedback on these principles.
Victims Services:
- Principle 1: All victims of crime should be offered practical and emotional support to cope and recover from the effects of the crime they have suffered.
- Principle 2: That support should in the main be provided by trained workers who are independent of the police.
- Principle 3: Critical to effective support is that victims are given timely and useful information about the crime investigation and any associated activities
- Principle 4: Victims of crime will be supported to ensure as far as possible they do not become a victim of crime again.
Sexual Abuse and Violence:
- Principle 5: Provide a timely and tailored response to immediate and long term needs of both recent and non-recent victims of any sexual abuse or violence.
- Principle 6: For those progressing through the criminal justice system provide specialist and independent support for all victims and their families regardless of age.
Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE):
- Principle 7: Raise awareness of CSE issues among young people and adults including training for stakeholders and communities.
- Principle 8: We will provide specialist CSE case workers to provide appropriate, individually tailored packages including supporting parents and families.
Please take this short survey to give us your feedback on the key principles:
The survey is open until Tuesday 7 August 2018.
