SAFE! is passionate about supporting children and young people to move past traumatic experiences, enjoy happy childhoods and thrive. Beyond our range of support services, we often work to promote systems and structures with this in mind, advocating with young people, to promote their voices and experiences in influencing change for the better.
Living in Limbo
Sign our petition calling on all agencies of the criminal justice system to prioritise young victims of sexual harm.
Over the past few years, we have found ourselves becoming increasingly powerless to provide meaningful support for some young victims who are experiencing a criminal justice system which adds to their trauma.
We are seeing children spend years of their lives awaiting the outcome of the criminal justice process. Many are being forced into a state of limbo, unable to move onto the next chapters of their lives while they are continually plagued and disappointed by postponements, last-minute delays and lack of communication. Some young victims of sexual offences are waiting up to 5 years from report to conclusion of justice whilst their childhoods slip away.
There is a growing sense of disillusionment among young victims regarding the criminal justice system, with one teenager telling us that she found the process of going through the court system more traumatising than the crime itself. Moreover, 63% of children we surveyed stated that they would not report a crime again; not because the alleged perpetrators were not found ‘guilty’, but because the procedure embedded within the system left them feeling unheard.
The impact that these issues are having on the wellbeing of young victims and their families is clear. Even those who do not present with significant concerns experience distress and anxiety. Young victims are also isolating themselves from their communities and limiting their social interactions as a way of protecting themselves. We have seen families suffer a breakdown in relationships, strained by the inability to move on from the crime.
All of the agencies of the criminal justice system – the police, the Crown Prosecution Service and the judiciary, have a responsibility to support young victims, part of which should include the prioritisation of their cases. Sadly, we often find this is not the case. Significant delays, especially, have led to these young victims feeling markedly unsupported and continually re-traumatised.
These children are severely disempowered by this process at a formative time in their lives, and these experiences are likely to impact them for many years. This is unacceptable, and something needs to urgently change to improve the journeys of young victims who are being let down by a system that is meant to protect them.
We need a criminal justice system that is reliable, efficient, and, above all, compassionate towards young victims. Last year, we shared our report along with eight recommendations with the agencies of the criminal justice system, and we have been advocating to see these changes brought in, but progress is slow. We now need your help to demand change by making these recommendations a reality and establishing a system that puts children first.