Crime can affect people in lots of different ways. If someone you’re working with has been affected, we can help. It doesn’t matter if the crime happened directly to them, or to someone else. We support anyone in London who’s been affected by a crime, at any point.
Our support is free and confidential, and a crime doesn’t have to have been reported to the police.
Refer someone to our service
0808 168 9291
00:00 – 00:00, Mon – Sun.
Who we are
The London Victim and Witness Service is a partnership of specialist organisations, funded by the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime.
We support anyone in London who’s been affected by crime, including frontline workers, children and young people, and people supporting others.
What we offer
We can support people:
- directly if they are referred to us, of if they refer themselves;
- via our self-help app, My Support Space; or
- by referring them to other specialist services.
Direct support
Our Support Workers will ask the person they’re supporting a number of questions, to understand how crime has affected them, and what support they might need.
All our support is individual to the person we’re supporting.
Depending on each person’s needs, we can help by:
- creating safety plans;
- talking to other services and organisations on their behalf;
- talking with them about how they’re feeling;
- providing information about their rights and the criminal justice system;
- supporting before, during and after court appearances; and
- much, much more.
Our support is trauma-informed and led by the person. We won’t take action on anything they’re not comfortable with.
Self-help
Our self-help app, My Support Space, is free, confidential and available 24/7.
It includes guides, self-help tools, videos and activities. These can help people make sense of their experience and how they’re feeling.
Referral to specialist services
Depending on someone’s individual circumstances and needs, we can refer them to specialist organisations who may be able to help with additional services.
Speak to a Support Worker, to see how we might be able to help.
Our services
London Victim & Witness Service is made up of the following service areas:
- Adult service – for people aged 18 and over;
- Young Londoner’s Victim Service – for children and young people as young as four-years;
- Domestic Abuse Service – for anyone experiencing, or who has experienced, domestic abuse;
- Hate Crime Service – for anyone who has been targeted due to their race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or gender;
- Pre-Trial Service – for people giving evidence in a criminal trial, as either the prosecution or defence
- Restorative Justice – for people who want to take part in restorative justice
How to refer
You can refer anyone to us by:
- Calling us, on 0808 168 9291
- Startling a live chat
- Sending us an online form
What happens after you refer someone
One of our Support Workers will contact the person you’ve referred to us.
Support is completely optional, and will be led by what the person wants and needs.
What to tell the person you’re referring
To encourage someone to take-up our support, you can tell them:
- our support is free and confidential;
- they don’t need to have reported a crime;
- our support is individual and tailored to them; and
- they can use our My Support Space app on their own, without speaking to anyone
Confidentiality
Our support is confidential. We won’t share information about someone’s support without their permission.
Have questions about referring?
View our frequently asked questionsMake a referral
Referring someone takes a few minutes, and could be the first step to getting them help.
0808 168 9291
00:00 – 00:00, Mon – Sun.
