Wiltshire PCC investing in victim support service boosts
Improving justice sector experience for victims in one of Philip Wilkinson's main aims in his new Police and Crime Plan
Wiltshire's Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) is investing more than £2.5 million pounds in victim support services.
Improving the justice sector experience for victims of crime is one of PCC Philip Wilkinson's main priorities in his new Police and Crime Plan.
Part of the funding comes from the Ministry of Justice, although that amount is 4.2% lower than last year.
It means continued support for frontline services has been prioritised and all community services have been maintained.
Mr Wilkinson told Greatest Hits Radio he hopes to bring more confidence into the system, allowing people to feel empowered to report crimes that have affected them.
He said: "We have to treat the criminal justice system holistically, and that is not therefore just about arresting people and locking them up.
"We need to look after victims, we need to look after witnesses who may feel threatened when they go through the court system, so providing that support is critical if we're to have an effective system and for us to be able to make Wilshire safer."
Some of the investment is going into improving the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) at Swindon's Gablecross Police Station.
The SARC space is being reconfigured to allow the victims who need to use the centre to have more privacy.
Mr Wilkinson said: "You can imagine the sorts of things that are going on in there. They're very intimate and they're tough for the victims to go through. We need to make it as easy as possible for them. And that means having the optimal design to protect their privacy."
The PCC said tackling serious sexual offences was "top of the pops" in his Police and Crime Plan.
He added: “We know we cannot eradicate crime completely so we must ensure the services we are funding are delivering for victims when they need it most, regardless of whether they’ve chosen to report a crime to the police. We will continue to drive delivery of the identified improvements to services to the required timescales to ensure victims are still able to be supported effectively.”
We can find out more about the Police and Crime Plan here.