One part of Victim Support, from a volunteers point of view (Victim Support)

Member Name: Fiver29

Product:	Victim Support
Date:	05/05/09 (97 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Helping people

Disadvantages: Hearing how much people are affected

I joined Victim Support as a volunteer in September 2008. There are several areas in which you can volunteer; you can become a visitor, part of Witness Support or help in administration. As I've worked in admin since leaving school I wanted to stay away from the office and get out into the real world, working with real people again. So I decided to opt for Witness Support, the duties here involve making witnesses feel as comfortable and as safe as possible whilst they are waiting to give evidence in court.

The process normally begins when witnesses are offered a pre court visit; this allows them to see the court room in the week or two before the trial. This can be quite a shock for a lot of people, but a shock in a nice way. They are expecting a court room that looks like the ones on the TV, whereas because we are just a Magistrates Court, the rooms are very different, and very often they use the court room that just utilises tables rather than a bench.

Running though the court procedures can also be comforting for people. The chances are people are stressing overseeing the defendant in court, and because of this they worry about the small things and blow them out of context. For example, they'll worry that they won't sit in the right place, or they worry that they'll forget the words of the oath. We can take people into the court room, show them where they'll be sitting, remind them that the usher will be with them on the day, and show them to their seat, and also will read out the oath first if necessary.

As I just mentioned, the main thing people worry about is seeing the defendant. Unfortunately the tabloid trash in this country scare the living daylights out of people and the witnesses are scared stiff of repercussions. Sometimes just having someone there to talk to is enough for people, others need the reassurances of people who've been through the same situation themselves (unfortunately I've had to be a witness several times).

Actually doing the job itself can be very rewarding. You meet some wonderful people, and it's nice to get to know these people, even if it's only for a couple of hours, and very often see them change almost in front of your eyes. What do I mean by that? Well there are the people who come in often with their heads down so far they can't look up, who are so scared they can barely hold a cup of tea without shaking it everywhere. Then as time passes, they relax, they become more confident, and by the time the usher comes in to call them, they can walk into the court with their heads up.

Then there are the youngsters, and by that I don't mean little kids, I mean the 18-25 group. They often come in all cocky and sometimes downright ignorant, and I'll admit sometimes I've thought, 'are you sure you're a witness, not a defendant?' But then they'll start to open up, and as long as you treat them right, they generally stop slouching all over the chairs, they'll have a laugh and a joke and become a polite kid by the time they leave. (Of course I'm not saying that all that age group come in with that attitude, probably 5% at most).

Not everyone goes through this transformation of course, and we occasionally go into the court with the witness. You are not allowed to speak in court, apart from to ask the usher if the witness can have water etc; although they ushers generally offer this anyway. But people will often feel better having someone just a foot or so away from them who is on their side. It can be very interesting to hear the testimony, and it's often amazing how much different the tale is under oath, than it is out of the court room.

I have to say (here at least) it has also shown me the inadequacies of the courts system. Defendants spend a reasonable amount of time with their counsel; witnesses however, only meet the prosecution barrister for about 5 minutes just before he goes into court. And in our court they often come from out of town. So when the witnesses are trying to describe things in terms of distances, i.e. they may say 'I was on the corner of X Street, and he was just over on Y Street' the prosecution barrister is at a disadvantage because he/she has no idea where they are, or how far apart they are. So them they begin fumbling and faffing around, then the defence solicitor gets to work, and they have everything organised well in advance, they know the ins and outs of the case, and their questions are rattled off with great determination.

The most interesting and rewarding part for me though, is helping the really young witnesses in the video room. Again you can't speak and prompt the children, but you can be there, you can ask for breaks if you can see the child is distressed, something that often doesn't come over on the video link very clearly. And of course you get to play lego with them before hand, which is always good!!

This is only one side of Victim Support. I have heard people laughing; talking about how they had something pinched out of their shed, and the next day Victim Support rang to see if they needed any help. Well on the face of it, this might seem a bit bizarre, but over the years Victim Support has changed, and whereas once they only rang victims of crimes they deemed worthy, they now allow the victim to decide whether the crime is worthy of needing help. A 25 year old man who's had his wallet pinched might well say no he's fine, whereas an 80 year old gentleman who's had his wallet taken might be absolutely distraught. He might have lost a precious lock of hair from a deceased child, or the only photo he has left of his wife, or he may have just lost every penny he has until next pension day and has no family to help him. So what is a minor crime to one person might well be life changing for someone else.

I love volunteering and would recommend it to anyone.

(Just to add, Witness Support shouldn't be confused with Witness Service, which is part of the courts system).

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