Victims and Witnesses benefit from new model of care
11 Oct 2004
A recently announced government scheme aims to support witnesses through to that end result. "No Witness, No Justice" recognises that without witnesses being willing to attend court, fewer offences will be brought to justice. It therefore aims to provide prosecution witnesses with the support they need to engage with the criminal justice process, and to participate in justice being served.
The £36m scheme does this by transforming services to witnesses from the point at which an offender is charged through to their sentencing in the courts. By creating a network of local Witness Care Units staffed by both police and CPS personnel, witnesses will be provided with a single point of contact, assigned to their case to ensure that their needs are identified and met throughout.
These needs may be practical: childcare for the court day, for example, or transport to and from each appearance. They may also be emotional: many witnesses are the victims of the crime they are reporting, and the Witness Care Unit will be able to put them in touch with local support organisations offering more specialist services.
The aim throughout is to use an awareness of these needs to provide genuine customer service. Each part of the process will be built around the witness, instead of expecting them to fit around the existing system. Each will be delivered by a partnership of local staff, working closely with other voluntary organisations such as Victim Support to deliver new levels of care.
These new ways of working began development in five pilot areas since July 2003. Pilot units have seen the number of witnesses attending court improve significantly, leading to a reduction in what are known as "ineffective" trials - i.e. those that don't go ahead when they are supposed to.
Combined with positive anecdotal evidence from witnesses supported by the new units, these results strongly support plans for an extension of the scheme nationally. It is envisaged that all local criminal justice areas across England and Wales will have Witness Care Units dealing with 100% of witnesses by December 2005.
Just as the NHS relies on blood donors, so the criminal justice system relies on witnesses for smooth delivery of the criminal justice process. By challenging the remoteness of services provided in the past, it is hoped that the new units will foster a similar sense of civic duty. And that they will serve to remind defendants that they can no longer "play the game" in court and hope that their witness does not turn up.
For more information about the support you can receive as a victim and witness of crime, please visit the victim and witness sections of this site.
Please direct all media enquiries about "No Witness, No Justice" to the CPS press office on 020 7710 6091.