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Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales Baroness Helen Newlove said support groups are facing mounting pressures with frozen budgets and rising caseloads
Victim support groups risk being pushed to “breaking point” and could soon be forced to cut staff, ministers have been warned.
Baroness Helen Newlove, the Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales, said services are facing mounting pressure with frozen budgets and rising caseloads. Sounding the alarm in an article for The Mirror, she said: “Victim services have repeatedly over the years been asked to do more with less.”
She said funding targeted at support for victims of sexual violence and domestic abuse is being frozen at current levels while other types of crime face a 4.2% cut.
Baroness Newlove said: “In reality, this means significant real-terms cuts for all victim services, despite the Chancellor’s announcement of an additional £1.9 billion for the Ministry of Justice in the November Budget.
“As Victims’ Commissioner, I understand the challenges of managing public finances at the current time. The justice system is facing huge challenges, with prisons, probation services, and courts each requiring significant funding.
“But spending on victims accounts for 1% of the total budget and I am disappointed these critical services have not been protected.”
Charities have also warned they are having to absorb Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s hike to National Insurance contributions for employees. Victim Support, which helps victims of crime and traumatic incidents, said earlier this month the funding settlement and Budget decisions mean they face a deficit of around £3.5million.
It also comes with victims being left in limbo longer due to a record court backlog the new Labour government is desperately attempting to bring down.
Baroness Newlove added: “Lengthy delays in our courts mean victims are stuck in the system – and on these organisations’ books – for longer than ever before as they wait for a trial date.
“With victim attrition rates far too high, this support is vital. Yet many victim caseworkers are carrying unsustainable caseloads. Victim services are not just a lifeline for individuals; they’re a pillar of the justice system itself. They cannot be taken for granted.”
Minister for Victims and Violence Against Women and Girls, Alex Davies-Jones, responded: “This government inherited a criminal justice system under immense pressure and a black hole in the nation’s finances.
“We must now make difficult decisions to ensure we can deliver the justice victims deserve, through our courts and across the system. By protecting our support for victims of sexual violence and domestic abuse, we are ensuring help is available to survivors of these awful crimes as they seek to rebuild their lives.”