Sadiq brings together police, criminal justice representatives and experts to improve the experience of victims of crime
Londoners affected by crime can now access the Mayor’s £1.3m restorative justice programme
London Victims’ Commissioner, Claire Waxman, to review whether victims are being treated to the standard set out in the Victims’ Code of Practice
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, today (Tuesday 21 November) opened his new £1.3m restorative justice programme as he brought together representatives from the Metropolitan Police Service and criminal justice agencies at a special summit to insist more is done to improve victims’ services.
From today, Londoners who have been affected by crime have the chance to meet their offender, if they wish to, at every stage of the criminal justice service through the Mayor’s Restore:London programme - an approach which has already proved successful in helping victims to recover from their experiences. Sadiq announced the funding for the £1.3m scheme last year.
Last year, there were approximately 740,000 victims of crime in London according to Met police data, but around a quarter of trials were classed as ineffective due to the victim or witness not attending or withdrawing from the process.
Sadiq has put the needs of victims at the heart of his policing plan for London with a £47 million investment into victims’ services across the capital over three years – up £6m from the previous Police and Crime Plan – and hopes to significantly increase the number of effective trials to bring more criminals to justice.
Today’s Victims’ Summit – led by his Victims’ Commissioner, Claire Waxman - is the first of its kind to be held in the capital and is a key part of Sadiq’s drive to improve the way that justice is delivered, and to challenge those working within criminal justice to put the needs of victims at the heart of what they do. This means helping and supporting vulnerable people – often at times of great trauma – to achieve justice.
At the QEII Centre in Westminster, the Met Police, Victim Support, the Crown Prosecution Service, HM Courts and Tribunals Service will hear powerful testimony from victims of crime about their personal experiences, and from academics about the impact that trauma can have on witnesses.
Claire Waxman will outline her plans to investigate whether the police and criminal justice agencies are living up to the Victims’ Code of Practice which sets out the required level of service victims should receive. This will involve meeting survivors and service providers across the capital to explore how the victim’s journey through the justice service can be improved. She will also set out her plans to develop a video training tool to help raise empathy and understanding in the justice system.
Restore:London will help victims achieve the justice they seek, and help offenders understand the impact of their crime with a chance to make amends directly to their victims. The move follows a poll which found that 46 per cent of victims would want to meet their offender*, but until now access across London was inconsistent. This new London-wide programme complements and enhances existing services, providing a consistent service across the capital, filling gaps in provision and operating alongside criminal justice procedures.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Crime can have a profound and lasting impact on victims, and it is essential that they are able to access the right support to help them recover and find justice. That is why I have appointed London’s first Victims’ Commissioner Claire Waxman and today we are bringing together the police and criminal justice partners to hear from victims to understand what more can be done to support them through this very traumatic process.
“I am proud that from today all Londoners affected by crime have the chance to sit down with their offenders if they wish to, supported by well-trained facilitators, to help them come to terms with their experiences and move on with their lives – a process which is also known to help drive down reoffending, cutting the cost to the taxpayer and making our communities safer.
“To be clear, this is not an easy way out for offenders. This process does not take the place of a criminal justice sanction and offenders do not receive any reductions in the punishment handed down as part of their sentencing.
“Too often victims are at best an afterthought and at worse ignored altogether. I’m determined to do all I can to change this. Without the confidence of victims to come forward and report crimes, we don’t catch the perpetrators, justice isn’t done and there’s the risk there’ll be more victims of crime down the line.
“The considerable financial pressure on our police and criminal justice resources means they are pushed to the limit. That’s why, alongside the work we’re launching today, it is vital that the Government gets serious about law and order and funds these vital services properly in tomorrow’s budget.”
‘Ruth’ a survivor of sexual assault, shared her experience of the service and support she received on a video shown at the Summit. She chose not to pursue her case after she was told that if she did not provide her previous medical history, she would not be able to give evidence in court. She said: “We have to give serious consideration to the value of current procedures and ask if the current structures are preventing people accessing justice? Would it be fairer to have a system where justice is about the event in question not past events, medical history, convictions or sexual history? My feeling is it would be – I don’t know what the ideal system is, but given the attrition rates and seeing how some people are further traumatised through the court system things can’t continue as they are. And justice begins at the first interaction – therefore as a base line there should be compassion and proper support for someone whose life may never be the same again.”
Claire Waxman, Victims’ Commissioner for London said: “Becoming a victim of crime can be one of the most devastating, traumatic experiences of a person’s life. If victims don’t receive empathy, compassion and high quality care and service from the police and justice organisations, this will have an impact on a person’s ability to cope and recover from their experience and their willingness to pursue their case through to conviction. There are so many great examples of quality service to victims of crime, but also too many examples of poor service which we must address. That’s why we’ve brought all of our partners together today to hear first hand from victims so we can discuss how we drive a better quality of support, service and care and why I’m launching my review into compliance with the Victims Code of Practice in London. Like the Mayor, I’m determined and dedicated to make the journey better for victims of crime in this city, and I’m delighted that so many of our partner agencies have come to the table to work together to achieve that goal.”
Professor Louise Ellison, Director of the Centre for Criminal Justice Studies, University of Leeds, said: “Crime can have a devastating effect on victims. A criminal justice system which truly had victims’ interests at its heart would attend more closely to the psychological impact of crime. As it stands, current trial processes often conspire to exacerbate rather than ameliorate crime-related trauma amongst a broad constituency of victims. It is to be hoped that events such as this Victims’ Summit will prompt a review of the way the criminal justice system interacts with victims of crime.”
The Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime (MOPAC) appointed Restore: London, a non- profit consortium led by social business Catch22, to develop the London-wide initiative last year. Together with key partners, the consortium aims to raise awareness of restorative justice among victims and offenders, improve access to services and victim satisfaction, increase referral speed and develop information-sharing between agencies. Restore: London, which is mainly comprised of people who have themselves been victims of crime, will share evidence and insights with key partners including Police and Crime Commissioners across England and Wales.
Chris Wright, Chief Executive Officer, Catch22, which leads the Restore: London consortium, commented: “We are delighted that The Mayor’s Office have recognised that restorative justice is a powerful strategy for helping people recover from crime. Our team are currently working hard with both victims and practitioners to map the availability and quality of provision across London. This is an opportunity to build a truly ground breaking, evidence led programme and to make sure that victims can access consistently high quality restorative justice services at every stage of the criminal justice cycle.”
Metropolitan Police Service Assistant Commissioner, Patricia Gallan, said: “The Metropolitan Police Service is encouraged by the Victims’ Summit and looks forward to working closer with our partners to give an increased level of support to all victims of crime.
“As police officers, we touch people’s lives at their worst moments – when they are facing a crisis, in their deepest sorrow and even in despair. We often take control for them when they are feeling frightened, isolated and in need of support. We understand that we must do so, with respect, empathy and compassion. We must listen to them.
“Therefore the Met remains committed to placing victims at the centre of what we do and as every good officer will tell you, it remains one of the main reasons for joining the service - to help them, to bring offenders to justice, to support victims in dealing with terrible situations and ultimately to ensure there are fewer victims in the future.”