ABSTRACT
Alongside the police and insurance companies, Victim Support is the third main agency with which victims in England and Wales are likely to have contact. The genesis of Victim Support was the Bristol Victims-Offenders Group, formed in 1970 under the auspices of NACRO (Rock 1990). The first Victim Support Scheme was subsequently launched in Bristol in 1973/74 and, despite a hesitant start, the scheme expanded and victim assistance gained national recognition. In 1979 the National Association of Victim Support Schemes was formed and by 1980 there were 256 schemes nationwide. During the 1980s and 1990s the expansion continued, Victim Support extended its influence on government, central government funding became established and services were extended to cover victim/witness services in courts (Maguire and Corbett 1987; Mawby and Gill 1987; Mawby and Walklate 1994; Raine and Smith 1991; Rock 1990; Russell 1990).
