Information for victims

Read about the rights of victims and the services and support available to them across our justice system.

We use the term ‘victim’ rather than any other term because it is used in Scottish legislation and is widely recognised.

We recognise the need for the right help, information, and support to be provided to victims of crime and their families. Respecting the rights of victims and being responsive to their needs plays a key part in ensuring our justice system is fair and accessible for all.

Our main function is to prepare sentencing guidelines for the courts. While we do not provide direct support to individuals affected by crime, we promote awareness and understanding of sentencing. Our guidelines aim to explain how sentences are decided, as well as to help sentencers in reaching those decisions.

The harm, or risk of harm, to any victim will always be central to the sentencing decision. Our guidelines ‘Principles and purposes of sentencing’ and ‘The sentencing process’, which apply to every sentencing decision, state that the impact on the victim must always be considered by courts when deciding a sentence.

The Victims' Code for Scotland sets out the rights of victims of crime and how to exercise these rights, including:

• minimum standards of service – how a victim can expect to be treated by criminal justice organisations
• information – how a victim will be updated about their case and what they can ask about
• participation – how a victim should be able to understand what is happening in their case and be understood in any information they provide, including about how a crime has affected them

The Victims’ Code is available in full here.

Information about the support available for young victims of crime is available here.

Children affected by crime who are under 12 can get in touch with Childline on 0800 1111. This helpline is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It is also possible to chat online with a Childline counsellor.

Children affected by crime who are older than 12 can still get in touch with Childline. They can also call Victim Support Scotland for free on 0800 160 1985.  

Adults who are worried about a child who may have been affected by a crime can call:

• NSPCC Scotland on 0808 800 5000 or by emailing help@nspcc.org.uk
• ParentLine Scotland, which can give advice on 08000 28 22 33 to people looking after or caring for a child
• Cedar, which offers support to parents and children who have been victims of domestic abuse

For some more serious crimes, one of the ways that the impact on the victim can be taken into account is through a victim statement.

A victim statement is a written statement that gives a victim the chance to tell the court – in their own words – how a crime has affected them:

• physically
• emotionally
• financially

More information on victim statements is available here. 

Victims and witnesses have a legal right to request the following information about the case in which they are involved:

• the dates of any court hearings
• the final decision of a court in a trial and any reasons for it
• the final decision of any appeal arising from a trial, and any reasons for it

If a victim wishes to request any reasons given for the sentence imposed by the court, they can: 

• complete this form
• send it (along with the identification called for in the form) to the court in which the case was heard 

A protocol has been drawn up by Police Scotland, the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), explaining who to contact for information. It is available here:

• Protocol on access to information - A guide for victims and witnesses
• Protocol on access to information - Easy read summary

In some criminal cases, victims have a right to get information about the release of a prisoner.

They also have a right to be told when the prisoner is considered for parole, and to make written representations (comments) about their release to the Parole Board for Scotland.

This is called the Victim Notification Scheme. It is managed by the Scottish Prison Service.

Further information about the scheme, including how to register for it, is available here.

Victims also have a right to get information about the release of an offender who is being kept in hospital for mental health care and treatment under a compulsion order and restriction order. These are orders which keep the offender in hospital.

They also have a right to be told when the offender is considered for conditional or absolute discharge from hospital, and to make written representations (comments) about the offender's release to the Mental Health Tribunal for Scotland.

This is called the Compulsion Order and Restriction Order (CORO) Victim Notification Scheme.

Further information about the scheme, including how to register for it, is available here.

Victims of violent crime may be entitled to compensation.

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority is responsible for administering the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme throughout Scotland and the rest of the UK.

More information on the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme is available here.

Information about the advice and support available for victims affected by specific offences is available here.

This includes information about the support available for victims of, among other things, domestic abuse, stalking, sexual offences, and road crashes.

The Victims’ Code for Scotland provides a comprehensive list of relevant authorities and how to complain, and a list of national support organisations. Two of the main points of contact for victims are Victim Support Scotland and the Victim Information and Advice (VIA) service, details below.