The status and needs of victims of crime has moved towards centre stage in criminal justice in recent years. In 2015, the UK government published the current Code of Practice for Victims of Crime in England and Wales, as mandated by s.32 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004. It reflects the government’s obligations under EU Directive 2012/29/EU on minimum standards on the rights, support and protection of victims of crime, EU Directive 2011/92/EU on combating the sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children, and EU Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combating the trafficking of human beings.
The government is currently spending about £200 million per annum on support services for victims of crime. It has now announced an overhaul of supports with the publication of a new cross-government victims’ strategy. This will include a review of the entire Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme with a view to ensuring that it reflects the changing nature of crime; especially around applications relating to child sexual abuse and terrorism. The government is already committed to abolishing the Scheme’s “arbitrary and unfair” pre-1979 ‘same roof rule’, whereby a victim is ineligible for compensation if he or she was living with their assailant as members of the same family at the time of the offence. The Court of Appeal declared this rule discriminatory and in breach of the ECHR in July in JT v First Tier Tribunal. In that case, the applicant had been denied compensation for sustained sexual abuse by her step-father when she was a child.
The government will also consider further reform of the Scheme’s eligibility criteria, including factors such as: the two-year time limit on applications; the current exclusion of applicants who have an unspent conviction that resulted in a specified sentence; and whether the definition of a ‘crime of violence’ should be broadened to include sexual exploitative behaviour such as ‘grooming’.
As part of its new overall strategy, the government will improve communication and support for victims of crime through the parole process. The Victim Contact Scheme will be simplified, and the quality of communication improved. Equally, Victim Personal Statements will be allowed at parole hearings, and revised training for Victim Liaison officers will be rolled out. These aspects might be interpreted as part of the response to the public concern that was generated by the Parole Board’s premature granting of parole for the serial rapist John Worboys.
The strategy also sets out details of a consultation process on a revision of the Victims’ Code to ensure that entitlements better reflect the needs of victims and the changing crime environment. A further consultation on a Victims’ law to underpin the Code, which will include strengthening the Victims’ Commissioner’s powers, will be announced in 2019. In addition, the government will consult on the establishment of an Independent Public Advocate to help bereaved families following a disaster. An Advocate will help guide families through an investigative process, ensure that their voices are heard at inquests and ensure that they are directed to appropriate support services. Although the government announcement does not expressly mention Hillsborough or Grenfell-type situations as coming within the remit of an Advocate, they would seem to have clear resonance for it.
Other features signalled in the new strategy include: improving court environments, with new victim-friendly waiting areas; a focus on better enforcement of the Victims’ Code, with increased responsibility for Police and Crime Commissioners in monitoring the delivery of services; and considering an extension to the ‘unduly lenient sentence scheme’ so that victims and the public can have sentences reconsidered by the Court of Appeal.