Victims and witnesses
Putting victims and witnesses at the heart of the Criminal Justice System...
Being a victim or witness of crime can be a traumatic and confusing experience. Everyone reacts differently to crime, either they've experienced it directly or indirectly.
The Cambridgeshire Criminal Justice Board has made victims and witnesses one of its top priorities.
New initiatives are taking place throughout the county to improve justice for people who've experienced crime.
These include:
- Giving a voice to vulnerable victims and witnesses through the use of intermediaries, experts trained to communicate with people with impaired communication skills.
- Taking the fear out of going to court for victims and witnesses by providing animated DVDs, explaining how the the court process works. The free DVDs, available in different languages, can be requested from any criminal court in Cambridgeshire or downloaded online.
- A raft of new initiatives, aimed at improving the criminal justice experience for victims and witnesses in Cambridgeshire. These include the introduction of conditional cautioning for less serious offences and adding a victim's surcharge to court fines. Click here to find out how victims and witnesses are being supported throughout the county.
Cambridgeshire's one of the first areas in England and Wales to provide Victim Support Plus, an enhanced service for victims, run by Victim Support.
To find out more about Victim Support Plus and other work done by the national charity, click here.