SPUR Project

2012 winner (10 of 14)

The therapeutic potential of the Victim Personal Statement Scheme
Supervisor: Ms Louise Taylor (Nottingham Law School)

The Victim Personal Statement (VPS) scheme was rolled out nationally to crime victims in 2001. It provides a means for victims to inform the courts and other criminal justice personnel about the crime’s impact upon them through a written victim personal statement. While sentencers can have regard to the content of the statement once a finding of guilt has been made, any reference by the victim as to sentencing outcome is to be disregarded. Most research on the VPS scheme focuses on the impact on sentencing outcomes. The project will provide an analysis of the scheme in the context of therapeutic jurisprudence with the intention of developing proposals for changes to the existing scheme to better address the therapeutic benefits that it could deliver. Student tasks will include updating an existing literature review, working with the project team to code and categorise VPS data, data analysis and reporting on findings. The student will be encouraged to maintain a reflective journal throughout the project.