Victims of crime and personal antisocial behaviour in Gloucestershire will be able to access innovative and additional support as a new Victim Support service launches in the county.
My office has gone through a vigorous process over the last couple of months as we looked at recommissioning and improving victim services.
Victim Support we\’re successful and have been awarded a 5 year contract.
Live Chat and young people
From today, and for the first time, victims will have access to a 24/7 live chat facility allowing them to get support, help and advice from trained support workers online. If they choose, victims can access this support anonymously.
Victim Support is also launching a new dedicated service for children and young people affected by crime called You Got This Glos. This is a Gloucestershire bespoke offer of one-to-one support for young victims. The accompanying website www.ygtglos.org.uk has been co-designed with young people and contains a range of resources, advice and information to help young people after crime.
Why we went for Victim Support
Victim Support has demonstrated its passion and ability to provide the best possible service to those unfortunate enough to suffer crime or personal antisocial behaviour. Being able to provide a round-the-clock service at this very challenging period in our history could hardly be more timely.
Victims of crime are at the heart of everything we do and I am delighted to be able to continue our partnership with Victim Support for another five years. Its bid to my office was of a very high standard and I feel confident the team will continue to deliver a top quality service.
New ways of offering help
We know that many people are looking at new ways to access support, information and advice from home and the new funded services provide just that. The experience of crime can be devastating, and has very specific impacts on children and young people.
Both adults and young people can talk to a trained support worker 24/7 through this new live chat facility. This allows victims to safely and securely discuss their needs and receive immediate support and advice.
Coupled with the dedicated website ygtglos.org.uk which has been designed with and for young people. It is packed with useful resources and information and is designed to empower young people, give them a voice and move them beyond crime.
About Victim Support
Victim Support has been providing specialist support to victims in Gloucestershire since 1998.
Last year the charity contacted over 10,000 victims of crime in Gloucestershire and provided specialist support to 6,837 people, including victims of violent crime, burglary, fraud and antisocial behaviour.
For more information and to access Victim Support’s services, visit victimsupport.org.uk/gloucestershire.
\”For me every crime matters, because every victim matters\”