Giving Child Witnesses The Support They Need
01 Dec 2004
The majority of special measures to assist vulnerable or intimidated witnesses giving evidence in Crown Courts were implemented in July 2002 as part of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999. Children under the age of 17 fall within the Act's description of a vulnerable witness. Measures include witnesses giving evidence by live link to the courtroom, the video-recording of children's evidence in chief, and the removal of wigs and gowns by judges and lawyers.
However, the Government decided not to implement the final measure on video recorded cross-examination and re-examination because of the difficulties with the rules on disclosure. The review will seek views on alternatives to this measure as well as how the other measures work in practice and all other aspects of child evidence.
In June this year Home Office research on vulnerable and intimidated witnesses showed that 76% of child witnesses were satisfied with the special measures which had brought great improvements for many vulnerable victims or witnesses of crime. Research published today by the NSPCC and Victim Support based on interviews with 50 child witnesses found that while the measures greatly helped child witnesses, there were still some instances where child witnesses encountered problems when giving evidence.
Home Office Minister, Baroness Scotland, said:
"Witnesses play a key role in the effectiveness of the criminal justice system. They are vital to ensuring justice is delivered and public confidence in the system is maintained.
"Giving evidence can be extremely daunting and stressful for adults; for children the experience is magnified, particularly for a young child who has been the victim of a sex crime. That is why the Government introduced special measures in the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act to give vulnerable and intimidated witnesses the help and support they need.
"The Government is today launching a review of child evidence to assess how well the special measures are working and to examine what improvements could be made. The Government is committed to ensuring that child witnesses who need our support, particularly those who are the victims of very serious crimes, receive the help and protection that they deserve.
"The NSPCC and Victim Support report on the experiences of child witnesses highlights a number of problems which some child witnesses faced when giving evidence, making their experience even more difficult. It is vital our review takes into consideration the findings of this report and the criminal justice agencies work together to improve services on the ground."
Courts Minister for the Department for Constitutional Affairs, Christopher Leslie, said:
"Attending court can be an overwhelming and sometimes intimidating prospect for witnesses, especially children. The Government is committed to making the experience as comfortable as possible through a range of different measures.
"Cases, especially those involving children should go through the system quickly and efficiently. There are many reasons why there are delays in court and these are being addressed.
"The Department for Constitutional Affairs is in the process of installing new IT infrastructure, named LINK, in all courts in England and Wales, to help speed up the delivery of justice. Witnesses and victims of crime will be able to communicate with the court more efficiently.
"Child witnesses also need to be protected while giving evidence in court. Currently, 85 youth courts have video links to protect child witnesses from facing defendants in court. They will help witnesses who may previously have been afraid to attend court to give evidence, especially in cases where there has been intimidation or violence."
The Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, QC, said:
"Witnesses have a responsibility as good citizens to give evidence at court, but they also have a right to expect to be supported, protected and informed throughout that process.
"We have already seen how special measures can help vulnerable and intimidated witnesses and now we need to ensure we make the system as supportive as possible for child witnesses who have to go through the experience of giving evidence in court.
"Giving evidence is never an easy option, but for child witnesses it can be even more intimidating."
Director of Public Prosecutions, Ken Macdonald QC said:
"We welcome this review of child evidence and the report published today by NSPCC and Victim Support. Supporting vulnerable witnesses and helping them to give their best evidence in court is a major priority for the CPS and it is a responsibility that we as prosecutors take very seriously.
"Child witnesses should be given as much protection as possible to minimise the ordeal of going to court and we have already made progress along that road by taking a leading role in implementing the special measures that were introduced as part of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act.
"Individual assessments of the needs of child witnesses and tailored support to address those needs, as with all witnesses, will also form part of the work of the specialist Witness Care Units being rolled out by CPS and police under the No Witness No Justice project.
"We realise that there is still some way to go and will be contributing fully to the review announced today."
Mary Marsh, Chief Executive of the NSPCC, said:
"The NSPCC welcomes the announcement that the Government is to launch a review of child evidence. Although much has been done to try to develop appropriate legislation and policy, there are huge gaps in implementation and young witnesses continue to suffer.
"I hope that this review, along with the report that we have published today with Victim Support, will ensure that young witnesses are helped to give their best possible evidence in court and to make it a less traumatic experience."
Dame Helen Reeves, Chief Executive of Victim Support said:
"We are delighted the Home Office has decided to undertake this full review of the way children are treated in court. We have welcomed the improvements provided by legislation but our main concern is that all of these are implemented in full as a matter of urgency.
"Our experience demonstrates that many children and young people are still waiting too long for their cases to come to court and are experiencing trauma once they get there."