A service which offers support for victims of crime is being enhanced to help even more people across Nottinghamshire.
Nottinghamshire Victim CARE is a free service offering people the chance to speak to a trained victim support professional who can provide a range of practical and emotional support.
The new service will help victims of crime as well those affected by anti-social behaviour, hate incidents, road traffic crime and identity theft. Young people and children affected by crime will have access to a new dedicated service tailored for their needs.
The service aims to empower victims to cope and recover from crime, by providing expert victim support and advocacy.
The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Nottinghamshire recently commissioned a new contract to deliver an enhanced offer until March 2027.
Outgoing provider Catch 22 have delivered the service since 2016, and played a key role in helping those negatively affected by the major incident in Nottingham back in June.
They will be replaced by Remedi, a national Victim Care specialist, who have been awarded the contract following a competitive tendering process and has been tasked with providing victims of crime and their families the best possible support, from 1 October 2023.
Head of Commissioning and Partnerships at the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Nottinghamshire, Nicola Wade, said: “Firstly we must thank Catch 22 for all their excellent hard work in the seven years they have been working with us. We would particularly like to thank them for their swift and pro-active response in supporting those affected by the recent major incident in Nottingham.
“We now welcome Remedi and are excited to be further enhancing the service on offer, with young people and children now also able to get help should they need it.
“It is crucial that victims of crime feel they have somebody to speak to and somewhere to go for advice, and that is exactly what the Notts Victim Care service provides.”
Previously, restorative justice was also offered within the Nottinghamshire Victim CARE service. However, they have now been separated out as two distinct services as part of a move to simplify them for the public and increase take-up. Great care is being taken during mobilisation by Catch 22 and Remedi to ensure that all victims have a smooth transfer to the new service.
Notts Victim CARE can be contacted on 0800 304 7575 or Home Page (nottsvictimcare.org.uk).
The helpline is open Monday to Friday, from 8am to 8pm and Saturday from 9am until 1pm. To talk to someone outside of these hours call the national Victim Support helpline on 0808 168 9111.
Nicola Bancroft, Assistant Director at Remedi, said: “Remedi are delighted to have been awarded the Notts Victim Care Contract.
“We are looking forward to working with key partners and the local community to ensure we deliver an accessible, trauma informed, tailored support service to help those affected by crime to move forward and feel empowered.
“Support will be available in person, via telephone and online for both children/young people and adults across a range of offence types. We will have dedicated youth and hate crime specialists within the team who will work with wider partners and community groups to ensure support is tailored to individual need.”
Posted on Thursday 3rd August 2023