Getting it right for victims and witnesses

Overview

This consultation is aimed at all criminal justice agencies, the victim support and advice sector, local authorities, the judiciary, all representative bodies and charitable organisations and members of the public with an interest in this area in England, Wales and Scotland.

Part 1 sets out the Government’s proposed approach to ensuring that victims and witnesses get the support they need, both to overcome the consequences of crime and to participate fully in the criminal justice process.

It also sets out our commitment to ensuring that offenders take greater responsibility for repairing the harm they have caused, through a combination of financial reparation and restorative justice.

Part 2 sets out how the Government proposes to reform the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (CICS) to protect compensation payments for those most seriously injured while removing less serious injuries like sprains from the scheme and restricting payments to those with criminal convictions.

Views are welcomed on both parts of the consultation document, specifically on the questions set out in the following pages. Please refer back to the consultation document for full supporting text.

Consultation events

We are holding two types of consultation events to further discuss the content of the document.
 
Comprehensive events

• Two events covering all proposals in the consultation document: (1) supporting victims and witnesses through the CJS (2) commissioning local services, (3) Surcharge and other financial impositions and the (4) Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.

We aim to have around 100 people at each event, with a mixture of plenary sessions and group discussions.
 
The focus of these events will be to gather a wide range of views on all proposals, from those working with and for victims, to victims themselves.
 
London (Royal Horticultural Halls) Monday 5th March
 
Manchester (Midland Hotel) Wednesday 14th March
 
Focussed events

• Five regional events focussing on the principles that should determine our approach, specifically (1) re-writing the Victims’ Code, (2) improving the victims’ voice in the CJS and (3) commissioning local services.  (Not the Surcharge or CICS)

 These will be smaller events with around 50 participants each. 
 
The focus of these events will be to have detailed discussions with practitioners and service providers from the voluntary and community sector.
 
Exeter (Rougemont Hotel) Tuesday 6th March
 
Cardiff (Maldron Hotel) Monday 12th March
 
York (Royal York Hotel) Monday 19th March
 
Peterborough (Bull Hotel) Wednesday 21st March 
 
Birmingham (Holiday Inn – City Centre) Monday 26th March

Why your views matter