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cut funding for victim‘Services are a “false economy” that costs more taxpayer This leads to savings, with one charity warning that services in the UK are now at “crisis point”.
analysis by victim supportwhich helps those affected Crime across England and Wales, It suggests that for every £1 invested in the charity’s services, up to £10.80 is saved, such as lower health care costs, retention of people in work and improved welfare.
The organization has given this warning Fewer victims will get help Services are on the verge of crisis due to rising costs and an increase in employers’ National Insurance contributions following cuts this financial year, according to a new report.
The Ministry of Justice announced that the budgets of the Corps of Police and Crime Commissioners, who commission victim services, would be cut by 4.2 per cent, as well as announcing a freeze on domestic abuse and sexual violence funding in December last year – cuts labeled “morally wrong and fiscally reckless”.
Victims Minister Alex Davies-Jones said the government inherited a criminal justice system under immense pressure and “a black hole in the country’s finances”.
“We now have to make difficult decisions to ensure that we provide victims with the justice they deserve through our courts and throughout the system,” she said.
But Katie Kempen, chief executive of Victim Support, said the cuts are “morally wrong and economically reckless”, telling the PA news agency: “What I see when I’m out in my services is that my staff are stretched, that our services are stretched, that everything is just stretched to the point where we’re really on the brink.
“We know that we support victims. We help them remain in employment, we help them maintain their well-being. We help them stay in their homes. We help them stay in the criminal justice system.
“And what this research is telling us is that investing in victim services actually saves money across the state and across the economy.”
The cuts come as the Crown Court backlog is at a record high of more than 78,000, with trials listed until 2029 and victims facing lengthy delays.
Amid rising demand for help, victims are calling for support cuts to be rolled back and sustainable long-term investment in the service.
Of the backlog, Ms Kempen said: “This means we will be supporting victims for years.”
The research evaluated Home Office data on the economic and social costs of crime and research on improvements from support for 4,495 victim support service users in 2023, to find an economic return on total services of £10.80 for every £1 invested.
The costs focus on the three categories of physical and emotional damage, lost production and health services identified by the Home Office.
Ms Kempen said: “This report makes one thing crystal clear: government cuts to victim services funding are a false economy.”
It came as a number of charities warned that the cuts would have “serious consequences” for victims of domestic and sexual violence.
In December, the rape crisis England and Wales, victim support, welsh women HelpIMCAN and Women’s Aid Federation of England wrote a joint letter Prime Minister warning them that the move would “jeopardize” the government’s mission to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) and leave them “no choice” but to make redundancies and reduce “lifeline” support services for victims.
Baroness Helen Newlove, the Victims’ Commissioner, has repeatedly raised concerns over victims’ services, and urged last month that “support can be the difference between a victim being engaged in the justice process or being turned away from it”.
In July, the charity Rape Crisis England & Wales said three of its centers had been forced to close in the past 12 months and severe shortages meant two-thirds of their centers could soon be forced to cut vital services.
As for victim support, Ms Kempen said: “We’re bringing in waiting lists, we’re supporting people for shorter periods of time, or we need to bring in triage so we can see the people who need it most.
“But we’re not seeing as many people as we’d like to see, or as we’ve seen in the past.”
In the year 2024-25, Victim Support was contacted by more than 655,000 people and offered information and support.
Those supported by charities may include helping victims escape dangerous relationships, advising survivors of sexual violence, or advising victims of fraud who have lost their life savings and helping them get the money back.
Support can range from a single phone call to several years of support.
In the charity’s report, Support That Saves, domestic abuse survivor Gemma – not her real name – describes her specialist caseworker as a “life raft” as she returned to work where she had seen her abuser every day.
The 57-year-old woman met her partner at work and was devastated after ending an abusive relationship, but she couldn’t afford to leave her job.
Gemma said: “I don’t think I would have any life if he hadn’t grabbed me and put me back together. I wouldn’t have been able to work a full-time job supporting myself.”
The Justice Ministry was contacted for comment.