Sarah's report finds courts fails survivors of child sexual abuse
Parliamentary report to reveal new data on child sexual abuse survivors shocking experiences of the court process while they try to secure justice
Seven in 10 survivors say they are not given appropriate support when going to court as a witness.
Survivors forced to take annual leave to attend court.
Two out of five survivors are not given the opportunity to give evidence remotely or behind a screen.
Three out of four survivors say they were not informed about their abuser’s parole or the process involved.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse will on Wednesday 23 October publish a report titled ‘Survivors’ experience of court and applying for compensation.’
The report publishes the findings from the APPG’s inquiry which consulted nearly 400 survivors and details a number of issues with the criminal justice system, including: professionals’ poor communication with survivors about the court process and trial outcomes, the challenges survivors face in attending as witnesses, the absence of after-court support and the byzantine process of applying for compensation.
The report contains unique data gathered from a survey of survivors and original research from Sarah Champion’s office presented in public for the first time.
The report makes a series of achievable recommendations on how Government should restore survivors’ confidence in the justice system, including: giving witnesses and survivors the same rights as jurors when they receive a court summons; mandatory training in trauma fir court staff; reforming the Criminal Injuries and Compensation Scheme (CICS) so that survivors are not disbarred from applying or retraumatised by the process.
Commenting, Sarah Champion said:
“This report exposes the Governments’ poor record on achieving justice for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.
Survivors should not face an ongoing battle to find out information about the court process or to get the special measures they are entitled to, enabling them to give evidence with confidence. Without these steps, is it any wonder many people drop out of the process altogether?
The Government is failing to give survivors confidence that their case will get a fair hearing at trial. Even worse, once the court process is over survivors say they feel abused by the very system they hoped would support them.”
Commenting on reform to CICA:
“It is a scandal that the Government has yet to reform the compensation scheme. It’s rules are out of date, for example we now know that some survivors are forced into criminal activity as part of the grooming process. This should not be a bar on them accessing compensation once that the abuse has been proven.
The whole scheme needs comprehensive reform so that victims and survivors are put at the centre of the process because, right now, it is all about saving the Government money not supporting people to rebuild their lives shattered by crime.”
ENDS
The report is part three of the APPG’s findings on adult survivors’ experiences of accessing support and the criminal justice system. The first report, titled ‘Achieving quality information and support for survivors,’ was published in May 2019. A second report, ‘Survivors’ experience of police and the Crown Prosecution Service,’ was published in July 2019.
Facebook: @appgsurvivors
Twitter: @appgcsa