‘Turn stated priorities and Victim and Witness Charter rights into action for benefit of all victims and witnesses’, urges Chief Inspector

Ms Durkin made the call today (March 6) following the publication of Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland’s (CJI’s) latest inspection report looking at the use of special measures in the criminal justice system.

“Victims and witnesses who report crimes, inform investigations and give evidence play a vital role in the criminal justice system by helping to bring offenders to justice and prevent further offending. The importance of their role, and what they do to help uphold the law for all of us, needs to be reflected in much needed investment in the support and services they are entitled to under the Victim Charter and Witness Charter,” said Ms Durkin.

“Ensuring all victims and witnesses are effectively supported and their individual needs are identified, assessed and reviewed throughout the often long investigation, prosecution and court hearing stages, is essential. The fact that defendants know that adequate and timely support may not be available to victims and witnesses is not helping and is not in the interests of justice.

“For a child, someone who has a physical disability or mental health issues, has experienced domestic abuse or sexual abuse, feels vulnerable or intimidated, or a combination of these circumstances, knowing early on you have access to support and special measures adjustments at court to assist you to give your best evidence if needed, can be the difference between staying engaged and withdrawing your evidence.

“In 2020, I recommended that an enhanced Victim and Witness Needs Assessment Service within the Victim and Witness Care Unit should be introduced.  I am deeply concerned that six years on, this accepted recommendation has still not been implemented by the Department of Justice (DoJ), the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and the Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland (PPS).”

The Chief Inspector added: “The clear requirement for this enhanced service was apparent to Inspectors then, and while supported in principle, is needed even more now, when criminal case backlogs, delay and recurring barristers’ strikes are impacting the time it takes for cases to come to hearing and victims and witnesses are kept waiting.

“I do not underestimate the challenges of insufficient and uncertain budgets, and while a Transformation funding bid had been made and a new revised model is anticipated following International research, I believe these services should be a sustainable priority in a baseline budget and should not be reliant on the success of a Transformation funding bid.

“I believe a sense of urgency is needed to accelerate access to Charter entitlements and support for all victims and witnesses who need it and we have recommended the DoJ, in partnership with the PSNI and PPS, should work to do this within the next 12 months.

“Senior DoJ officials have advised me that this timescale is not feasible, however, I remain hopeful that some improvements to needs assessment and confirmation of access to special measures for those who are currently waiting a long time could be made.”

Inspectors found evidence of improvements that have been put in place, particularly for child and adult victims of sexual and domestic offences. They included the increased use of Remote Evidence Centres, to enable evidence to be given away from the court building and Registered Intermediaries, to help those with communication difficulties to effectively give their answers during police interviews and at Court.

“These are positive steps and Inspectors found evidence of high conviction rates and strong satisfaction levels among victims and witnesses who had used the services,” said Ms Durkin.

 However, the Inspection revealed inconsistencies in the approach to special measures used by both the PSNI and PPS that needed to be addressed.

“Inspectors found the PSNI’s approach to special measures lacked strategic oversight with different sections of the organisation operating to their own objectives.  Training provided to Police Officers was fragmented and the absence of a comprehensive training strategy and quality assurance arrangements, meant vulnerabilities were not always identified and victims and witnesses were not always informed of their entitlements,” said Ms Durkin.

A sample of 28 PSNI case files reviewed by Inspectors where victims or witnesses were eligible to apply for special measures found police officers had identified the need for special measures in only ten (36 per cent) of the cases. Inspectors were also concerned by the quality of some Achieving Best Evidence recorded interviews, which are often used to obtain evidence from vulnerable witnesses, especially children and victims of sexual offences.

“We have recommended the PSNI take steps inside the next six months to improve its strategic approach to special measures and improve the development and delivery of its training.  Operational guidance should be updated with metrics and improved quality assurance measures introduced to address these issues and enhance the quality of Achieving Best Evidence interviews,” Ms Durkin said.

Inspectors also found the PPS’s strategic approach was insufficient in ensuring the early identification of special measures.  Its approach to assessing victim and witness needs was not fit for purpose with low response rates to initial needs assessments and a lack of monitoring and follow-up.

“Prosecutors often relied on victims self-identifying their needs, even in cases where they were legally automatically eligible for special measures.   A review of PPS prosecution case files showed that out of 31 cases where there was an automatic eligibility for special measures, Prosecutors identified a need for and considered special measures in only six (19 per cent) of these cases,” said the Chief Inspector.

“Our evidence gathering also showed special measures applications were frequently made late in the process which could reduce the effectiveness of support when it was provided and increase anxiety for victims.

“We have recommended that by Autumn 2026, the PPS should implement these inspection recommendations, to put in place the necessary strategies, quality assurance mechanisms and monitoring arrangements, to address the issues identified in this report.”

Ms Durkin said that while overall special measures delivered clear benefits for many victims and witnesses, there was a need to urgently address significant gaps in oversight, training needs assessment and quality assurance across the criminal justice system.

“We want to see action from the DoJ, PSNI, PPS and the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service to prioritise the implementation of the five Strategic and one Operational Recommendation made in this report for the benefit of victims and witnesses,” she said.

 “All victims and witnesses should know they will have access to their Charter entitlements, get the support they need, when they need it and can give their best evidence when it is required to help Prosecutors achieve convictions and bring offenders to justice. This is vital for confidence in the criminal justice system and keeping our community safe.”