Victim Support is keen to ensure the new office, which replaces the Metropolitan Police Authority, makes the most of the opportunity to improve the capital’s criminal justice system.
As a result of a law passed last year, and as reported on Info4Security yesterday, the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPC) now holds responsibility for scrutinising the police and deciding their priorities, and a new legal duty to consult victims.
This means London could lead the way towards a new ‘victim-focused’ style of policing.
The challenge for the MOPC is huge, and Victim Support has been swift to highlight the size of the job facing the Mayor and his team.
- London victims are less than half as likely as those in Northumbria to be offered the chance to make a formal statement about how the crime affected them on a personal basis
- the Mayor’s own research shows women are more likely to be victims of violence in London, but less likely to see their attackers successfully prosecuted than anywhere else in the country
- nationwide, fewer than half of all victims (48%) feel that the police are doing a good job compared to 59% of non-victims, and are nearly 20% less likely than non-victims to feel confident in the police (contact with Victim Support is shown to improve victims’ confidence and satisfaction with the police quite significantly)
More central role in policing strategy
Jeff Gardner, Victim Support’s director for London, said: “We welcome the potential for victims’ views to play a more central role in police strategy, and we’ll be watching closely to see how the MOPC delivers on its new duty to consult victims.”
Gardner continued: “Listening to victims’ needs is vital if we are to ensure the most appropriate services are in place to meet them. There needs to be a level of consistency so that victims can access quality and value for money support wherever they live.”
Victim Support seeks regular feedback from the victims of crime in London, including rape and hate crime, to find out what they need from the police and support services.
“We are keen to share our knowledge with the MOPC,” added Gardner, “and hope to use our experience and expertise to ensure that victims have the support they need.”
New burglary sentencing guidelines adopted by courts put victim first
Victim Support also welcomes new sentencing guidelines on burglary which came into force in all courts in England and Wales yesterday and take into consideration the impact of crime on the victim.
This means that offences will be seen as more serious if, for example, a victim is at home when a burglary takes place. Offenders burgling homes face up to six years in jail, up to five years in non-domestic cases and up to 13 if armed.
Judges must follow the guidelines unless it’s in the interests of justice to depart from them. They state that Crown and Magistrates’ Courts must always set a custodial sentence for aggravated burglary (ie when a weapon was involved).
The proposals have taken account of the views of the public and victims, who thought domestic burglary should generally result in a custodial sentence but not in every case.
Devastating occurrence, lasting impact
Javed Khan, the chief executive of Victim Support, commented: “Being burgled and having your personal belongings trashed or stolen can be devastating and have a lasting impact. With a quarter of burglary victims losing confidence, a fifth having trouble sleeping and one-in-ten suffering from depression, it’s only right that the impact is taken into account in sentencing.”
Khan went on to state: “Victim Support is pleased that the new guidelines take this into account and hope it will lead to more victims being offered the opportunity to tell a court about the effect through a victim personal statement. It’s bad enough being a burglary victim, but being at home when the crime takes place is far more frightening. This needs to be considered when an offender is sentenced.”
The Sentencing Council for England and Wales said the lowest level of offenders, for whom a non-custodial community sentence might be appropriate, could include those with no previous convictions who did not force entry and took goods of low value.