Caring for Children in Court
10 March 2007
I have received an email from the NSPCC asking me to lobby the Government to help children that give evidence in court. The email is from Noel Edmonds:
NSPCC Email
Noel Edmonds - chairman of the NSPCC's Caring for Children in Court Appeal says act now to help child witnesses
[Noel Edmonds]
Over 29,000 children need to give evidence in court every year. Many of these children do not get the support they need to ensure they get the justice they deserve.
"In the past two years I have personally lobbied Government Ministers, Home Office officials, representatives of the Bar Council, the Law Society and the Crown Prosecution Service. All agree that the current situation is unacceptable and that we must ensure that every child, regardless of where they live in UK, receives the appropriate level of support so that they can give best evidence in order to achieve justice."
Support our campaign for witness support schemes for all children, wherever they live.
"In a recent survey, half of child witnesses reported that they had not understood the words or phrases being used in court, and just under half said they had been accused of lying - sometimes more than once. Some children even say that the experience of giving evidence can be as traumatic as the abuse they have suffered.
"Baroness Scotland is the Minister for Justice at the Home Office with responsibility for this issue. These children desperately need your support and I therefore urge you to let the Minister know how important this is to you."
End of NSPCC Email
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