§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the recent projects inspired by the victims' charter which have been put into place which give victims the opportunity to explain how crime has affected them. [37070]
§ Mr. Keith BradleyThere is one such project, namely, the victim personal statement scheme—which is now a national scheme.
A key standard in the 1996 victim's charter was that victims of crime should be given the chance to say how the crime had affected them. Pilot projects to test how this might be done led to the introduction nationally of the new victim personal statement scheme with effect from 1 October 2001.
The scheme provides a chance for victims to say how the crime has affected them, and to include anything else they wish to add. The victim personal statement then becomes part of the case papers, and will be seen by all criminal justice personnel subsequently dealing with the case.
Fuller details of the scheme and accompanying documentation are given in Home Office Circular 35/2001 of 14 August 2001, available on the Home Office website (http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk). The scheme is being evaluated during 2002.