RoadPeace’s Campaign Coordinator, Victoria Lebrec, has been selected to represent crash victims on the Ministry of Justice’s Victims’ Panel.

This is a fantastic opportunity to ensure that the issues facing crash victims are heard by government. RoadPeace knows from its work with victims that the justice system often serves to re-traumatise, and that the support victims require is found to be lacking.

The Victims’ Panel is an expert panel made up of those with lived experience of crime and experts in victim support. It exists to provide a forum for victims and survivors to have a voice in the development of government victim and witness policy.

The Victims’ Panel was established by the Ministry of Justice in 2017. In line with the Terms of Reference for the Panel, the membership was refreshed in autumn 2019. The Panel is chaired by the Victims’ Minister, Wendy Morton MP.

RoadPeace will be using this forum to lobby for improved treatment of crash victims, including ending the discrimination of crash victims. An example of why this matters is with the right to appeal unduly lenient sentences – recently this was extended to other crimes but not to causing death by careless driving.  A key aim will be to ensure that all crash victims are treated as victims of crime until the contrary is proven so that information and support can be provided when needed.  If there are specific topics you would like to see addressed, please get in touch with her victoria.lebrec@roadpeace.org

Updated on: 25 September 2019