Cheshire Probation Area

The Victim Charter and the Criminal Justice & Court Services Act 2000 provides the basis for the National Probation Service to offer a service to all victims, survivors and next of kin of serious sexual and violent criminal offences where the offender has been sentenced to 12 months or more imprisonment.

A sympathetic approach is taken when making contact. Initially contact will be made by a letter offering a face to face appointment at the home of the individual. Any special needs, including vulnerability, are taken into account before contact is made in order to ensure a high quality service can be delivered. The Victim Liaison Unit will also provide information on other support services/organisations if required.

At the interview the Victim Liaison Officer will:

• Explain the rights of the individual and the information they can provide to the Criminal Justice process.
• Respond to the strong emotions which often emanate from the offence, sentence, and court process.
• Provide information about the sentencing process, for example, the type of sentence, prison category A-D, sentence length and key dates of sentence.
• Explain the individual's right to confidentiality.
• Assess the risk of re-victimisation.
• Seek to obtain views for inclusion in the preparation of parole reports.

In addition to the above in Lifer cases, the Victim Liaison Officer will advise on the Tariff / Minimum sentence and Reviews.

Contact Us

The Victim Liaison Unit maintains contact and is available to any requests for information during the sentence period arranging repeat contact as and when required. 

The Victim Liaison Unit is based in Chester and covers Cheshire, Halton and Warrington.

Contact can be made by telephone, letter or by filling in and submitting the contact us form by clicking here:

National Probation Service, Cheshire Area

Victim Liaison Unit

Jupiter House, Jupiter Drive,

Chester West Employment Park

CHESTER, CH1 4QS

Telephone Number: 01244 665111

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