Victim Support (VS) is the independent national charity for people affected by crime.
Our highly-trained staff and volunteers in the community give free and confidential help to victims of crime, their family, friends and other people affected. This takes the form of information, emotional support and practical help. Victims don’t have to report a crime to the police to get our help and can ask for support at any time, regardless of when the crime happened.
We have a network of offices right across England and Wales running and co-ordinating our local services. We also run the Witness Service in every criminal court to help those called as witnesses and our Victim Supportline (0845 30 30 900) gives immediate help over the phone and puts people in touch with our local teams. We are not a government agency or part of the police.
As well as providing services, we campaign for greater awareness of the effects of crime and to increase the rights of victims and witnesses.
How we help
Victim Support gives three main kinds of help to both victims and witnesses:
- emotional support – to help people deal with the personal effects of crime
- information – so that victims and witnesses can make better informed choices after a crime, particularly in relation to their rights and in their dealings with the criminal justice system
- practical help – which can range from help filling in forms and lock fitting services through to full advocacy where needed.
A few facts about Victim Support
- Victim Support is the oldest and largest organisation dedicated to meeting the needs of victims and witnesses of crime in the world.
- Victim Support began in 1972 when a small, local project was set up in Bristol. It inspired people all over the UK, and worldwide, to create similar schemes.
- Since 1972, Victim Support has contacted and helped around 25 million people who have been victims or witnesses of crime.
- Each year we help and support over one and three quarter million people affected by crime.
- Victim Support started helping witnesses in court in 1989, thanks to a single, large donation from a member of the public. The Witness Service now operates in every criminal court in England and Wales.
- HRH The Princess Royal has been a patron of Victim Support since 1989 and became the charity’s President in 2001.
- The Victim Supportline was launched in 1998 with the help of the Home Office. Since then, it has taken well over 150,000 calls from victims of crime.
- Most of our front-line work with victims and witnesses is done by trained volunteers. We currently have around 6,500 people who give up their time for free to help others in their community affected by crime.
- Victim Support helps with all kinds of crime, including the most serious. This includes supporting over 1,000 people affected by homicide each year and over 20,000 victims of rape and sexual assault.
- The UK Government has been a major funder of Victim Support since 1987. But Victim Support remains an independent charity that is also dependent on fundraising.
Case studies
Chris Jack
My name is Chris Jack and I have volunteered for the Witness Service at Manchester Crown Court for nearly six years. I am also a full time research manager, so I fit my volunteering in by working longer hours each day so that I can volunteer at court one day a week. I am trained in supporting young witnesses at court.
In six years I have only been unable to carry out her voluntary work once, due to work commitments. I enjoy the volunteering so much that I use my annual leave to attend volunteer meetings and training courses.
I regularly receive positive feedback, and thank you letters from witnesses and police officers, which is really nice. In 2008, I was nominated for a Local Criminal Justice Award for my commitment to helping victims and witnesses.
Lyndsey Gayle
Lyndsey Gayle was born in Northampton and is 25 years old.
I think it is very easy for many young people to be unaware of what goes on around them. But as people get older they lose their childish naivety, they realise the world is not as perfect as they thought it was. I decided I wanted to contribute something to my community, and began to volunteer for Victim Support.
I applied to become a Victim Support volunteer in October 2007, visiting victims in their own homes to give them support, and completed my core training in February 2008. Since then I have been supporting victims of crime in the Telford area of Shropshire. I am one of a team of great volunteers working for Victim Support in Shropshire.
I really enjoy the work, and find it very rewarding. Sometimes you don’t have to say anything, but just listen and be there – you begin to realise how valuable even silent support is.
As well as volunteering for Victim Support, I am studying at the University of Wolverhampton for a BA Honours in Business and HR Management. I also work as a clerical assistant for a local authority.
Retired teachers have given over 25 years of voluntary service in Bolton
Besides volunteering for the Witness Service at Bolton Crown Court, Hilary, Harry, Diane, Jackie, Sheila, Steph and Patricia have something in common; they are all retired teachers.
Witnesses, young and old, benefit from the exceptional communication skills this group of volunteers have developed over the years, which enable and empower young people. These skills are vital in supporting witnesses through the difficult experience of giving evidence.
The volunteers come in early and leave late. They stand in driving rain to help us raise money. They tirelessly support and enable new volunteers.
One of them first experienced the Bolton Crown Court Witness Service as a grieving parent, following the death of their son by a driver convicted of causing death by dangerous driving. Many years later this volunteer brings special insight to supporting bereaved families and clears a diary to do so.
A recent example shows just how well the volunteers connect with the people they help. One member of the team found out what mattered most to one witness, a man so heavily influenced by drugs that he was unaware of his thirtieth birthday. Other agencies actually commented on the way in which the volunteer managed to help him.
Their volunteering has helped the Bolton Witness Service to win a national award, in March 2009. Presented at the National Area Witness Champion Conference, the award was given in recognition of the service’s outstanding care to young witnesses.
The volunteers’ work also helped the service to win four awards at the Greater Manchester Justice Awards, including Overall Winner, and an Area Sunshine Award.
Police Officers in Bolton Child Protection Unit signed a thank you card for the Bolton Crown Court Witness Service in March 2009. They said: “Just wanted to say a big thank you for your help and support with all the children and families who attend Bolton Crown Court. We all think you do a terrific job and greatly appreciate you all.”
Some of the comments show witnesses’ appreciation of the service given by the ex-teachers: “You are fabulous. You made a very stressful situation bearable. I am so grateful you helped me relax and feel more comfortable”, and “Thank you especially for showing me the court beforehand I cannot explain how helpful it was it lifted a weight from my mind.”
Philip Bowden
Phil has volunteered for the Witness Service in Manchester for eight years and is a really valued member of the team. He celebrated his 60th birthday last year and once enjoyed life as a professional footballer.
The team is lucky to have Phil; he is really flexible with volunteering times, and is able to come into work at the drop of a hat. He often volunteers for more than one day a week, covering any absences.
He holds a ‘Bookers’ card, so he does all the shopping, at a discount, for drinks and snacks, so that the service can give witnesses a selection of refreshments. He takes home the dirty laundry, including tea towels and table cloths, on a weekly basis and brings them back washed and ironed. He has administrative skills so is able to cover for the managers if they are on holiday or off sick. Staff, volunteers and witnesses think he is great - he is one in a million!
Brian Harman
Brian has been volunteering for Victim Support’s Witness Service in Manchester for three years. Brian not only volunteers one day a week in Manchester, but he also volunteers in his local community, helping victims of crime. Brian’s commitment to the people he supports is second to none.
He is 100% dedicated to whoever he supports, and if that means working extra days then he makes himself available. Brian also does other voluntary work in the community so his time is very much taken up by caring for, and helping others.
Volunteer Case Study: Pat Blatherwick
Pat Blatherwick has been volunteering for Victim Support in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, for over 25 years. She is a highly valued volunteer. Pat supports victims and witnesses, volunteering in the community and also for the Witness Service at Sheffield Magistrates Court. Pat supports many victims who are affected by crimes such as domestic violence and sexual violence, and she is very flexible with volunteering times.
It saddens me to see the effects of crime, but I feel very privileged to be part of a charity that gives support, comfort and help to those affected. Contact with each victim can be very brief or long-term; the satisfaction of being part of the healing process is very rewarding. “Over the years, volunteering for Victim Support has, I think, enabled me to grow as a person. I’ve learnt so much from it as well. I always say about my work that I gain as much as I give. To receive a thank you from a witness in court or a little note from a victim or their family makes it so worthwhile. I recommend it.
Pat’s manager, Maria Pearson, said: “Pat is a really lovely person. She is so giving, and great at supporting victims and witnesses.”
