Victim and Witness Care Officer (Hybrid) based at Bridgwater, Bristol or Keynsham

Are you a person who is passionate about supporting or championing people who may need help or protection?

Our Victim and Witness Care Officers (VWCO) do just that, they are responsible for being the initial point of contact for victims and witnesses and providing support, guidance and help at the most critical of times.

They are the link between our internal departments and other organisations we work alongside, building relationships, to ensure all victims and witnesses feel fully supported, informed and updated.

As a Victim and Witness Care Officer, you will contact people following a crime to assess their needs and give practical and emotional support. You will be talking to multiple people every day and the people you will talk to may be upset, emotional, scared and distraught.

You will need to be able to deal sensitively with challenging and emotionally charged situations, demonstrate empathy and control own emotions.

This role is pressured, and you will therefore need to be someone who is happy working to tight time constraints and changeable deadlines.  

In this role you will:

Review police information to support decisions.
Make phone contact with victims of crime to offer support and help.
Make contact with organisations that protect children and adults who are at risk of harm.
Support witnesses and assist them in understanding their role, in the Criminal Justice process.
Keep victims and witnesses informed as their case progresses.

Skills required for this role:

Communicate effectively, verbally and in written form, including telephone skills.
Strong customer services focused conversations.
Working collaboratively and experience of building strong relationships with colleagues and other agencies.
Be a natural problem solver.
Computer literacy, proficient user of all Microsoft Office applications.

What does the job really involve?

Please read our ‘day in the life of a VWCO’ accounts attached.  These will give you an insight into the role written by VWCO's currently working in the role. 

VWCO’s work Monday to Friday covering the hours of 8-6. Your working week will be split into a proportion of early shifts being 8am-4pm and late shifts being 10:30am-6:30pm. Please see attached VWCO shift pattern for more information.

This role is blended so you will be able to work from home the majority of the time but will be based at your work location at least 2 days a week. 

We would also like to invite you to attend a virtual Familiarisation Event where you can find out more about the role and the team you will be working with, you will also have the opportunity to ask any questions. These events will take place over Microsoft teams on the following date:

13th May 2024 at 12 noon until 1pm

If you would like to attend this event, please email talentpolicestaff@avonandsomerset.police.uk. Attendance at this event is not mandatory and we would still welcome an application from you if you are not available to attend.  If you have any questions but are not able to attend the event, please email your questions through to talentpolicestaff@avonandsomerset.police.uk.     

This is a challenging but rewarding role…..are you up for the challenge? At Avon & Somerset Police we’re here to serve, protect and respect everyone in our community. Our values are to be caring, courageous, include others and to keep learning. Does this sound like you?

Ready to apply?

We are currently recruiting into a bank for future vacancies, this means if you are successful we will reserve your application for a period of 12 months and offer you a position when it becomes vacant.

Victim Witness Care Officer roles are based across our three safeguarding hubs located at Bridewell in Bristol, Keynsham and Bridgwater and there will be a mixture of full time, part time, permanent and temporary positions available across the course of the 12 months.

Tell us about yourself! We particularly welcome applications from people who can speak additional languages or have personal experience of people from different backgrounds – but don’t worry if you think that doesn’t apply to you, we’ll still be really keen to hear from you and the difference you can bring. 

You do not need any qualifications to apply for this role as full training and mentoring will be provided.

To be eligible to apply for this role you must have a 5 year 'checkable history' in the UK - ideally this means that you would have been resident in the UK for the last 5 years.