A NEW Victim Advice Line is being launched in the West Mercia Police area.
It follows a consultation exercise which by Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion which found that victimd wanted things done differently.
They called for a single point of entry into support, quick updates on their case, and greater ownership of their journey and to help shape it themselves – as opposed to being labelled by a type of crime and having a ‘one size fits all’ support package.
And the results of the consultation have shaped all that the Victim Advice Line (VAL) aims to deliver when it goes live on April 1, 2019.
The Victim Advice Line will be made up of fully trained victim care co-ordinators to help victims as they come through to the service, be it through police, third party or self-referral (the crime doesn’t have to have been reported to the police).
The victim may then be referred on to other specialist services, dependent on the level of support they may need.
This type of model is being seen as best practice and a flagship across the country in delivering support to victims, having already been adopted by other PCCs and police forces.
PCC Campion said: “Whilst the contract we had with Victim Support was good, to provide victims with what they wanted we needed to make some fundamental changes.
“The Victim Advice Line will look at an individual and make sure they’re getting the level of support they need.
“They won’t be given a pre-determined package, they’ll be given support that is completely tailored to them. By doing this we hope to give victims greater confidence and satisfaction that will help in moving forward with their life.”
