Women’s Aid responds to Victims’ Commissioner’s report on victim advocates

Farah Nazeer, chief executive of Women’s Aid, comments:  

“We are pleased to see the new report from the Victims’ Commissioner, looking at the vital role played by victim advocates when it comes to supporting survivors going through the justice system.  

 

“It is however, heartbreaking to see that a record number of survivors withdraw from the process of obtaining justice due to wholly unacceptable backlogs and waits. We know from working with survivors that many aspects of the system are incredibly challenging to navigate, with women saying that they didn’t report instances of domestic abuse for fear of not being believed, and those going through the family courts process saying that it re-traumatised them all over again.  

“Victim advocates, alongside other life-saving support services, are essential to ensuring that despite numerous challenges, survivors continue their fight for justice and perpetrators are brought to account for the heinous crimes they commit. It is vital that there is sustainable investment in specialist women’s domestic abuse services – a minimum of £427 million annually in England alongside ring fenced funding for services led ‘by and for’ minoritised groups –  to ensure that this life-changing work continues, along with greater recognition of the role that they play within the justice system. It is only by listening to, and supporting survivors in their brave quest for justice, that we can build a world in which domestic abuse is no longer tolerated.”