In the aftermath: the support needs of people bereaved by homicide

108 Pages·2006·0.54 MB·English

In the af termath
The support needs of people
bereaved by homicide:
a research report
In the aftermath. The supportneedsofpeople bereaved byhomicide: a research report
Alison Paterson
AmplifyTraining
Peter Dunn, KatyChaston, LesleyMalone
Victim SupportResearch and DevelopmentDepartment
February2006
Victim SupportNationalOffice
Cranmer House
39 Brixton Road
London SW9 6DZ
© Victim Support
Allrightsreserved. No partofthispublication maybe reproduced in anyform or byanymeans,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise withoutthe prior permission of
Victim Support.
Primaryaudiences: Victim Support, SAMM and other supportorganisations
Action: For information
Status: Final
Review date: None
Bestbefore date None
Keywords: Murder; manslaughter; homicide; bereavement; effectsofcrime; supportneeds
Coverage: England, Walesand Northern Ireland
2 In the aftermath
Acknowledgements
We are verygratefulto the people who agreed to participate in thisresearch bysharing their
experienceswith the researcher and bygiving so generouslyoftheir time, ideasand insights.
We thankthe steering group who advised and helped with designing the methodology, approaching
participants, organising focusgroupsand resolving a range ofcomplexand sensitive difficultiesin
the course ofthe research. The steering group included:
Colette Bennett Victim SupportStaffordshire
Lin Collings Victim SupportBedfordshire
GeoffCox WitnessService Nuneaton & Atherstone
PatsyCullinan SAMM1 NationalOffice
Andrew Grant Metropolitan Police Service
Eve Henderson SAMM Abroad
Clare Honeysett NationalProbation Service, ThamesValley
NeilPaterson Victim SupportScotland
Fiona Richmond Victim SupportNationalOffice
Professor PaulRock London SchoolofEconomics
Glenn Wood Victim SupportGreater Manchester
We would also like to thankInspector ChrisGrant, NorfolkConstabulary, for organising the police
familyliaison officer focusgroup.
We are verygratefulto SAMM, in particular to DerekRogers, Chair, and PatsyCullinan, National
Office Co-ordinator for their supportwith thisproject. Theycontacted SAMM memberson our
behalfto invite them to participate in the research, and provided invaluable advice and assistance
throughout.
1
SupportAfter Murder and Manslaughter
The supportneedsofpeople bereaved byhomicide: a research report 3
4 In the aftermath
Contents
1. Introduction and background to the research 7
2. Executive summary 9
3. Research methods 13
4. Practical support needs 15
Criminaljustice process
Notification ofdeath - Identification ofthe victim - Post-mortems
Investigation - Trialand sentencing - Victim statements
Other practicalneeds
Media attention - Finances- Employersand schools- Domesticmatters
Child care - Travel- Atthe hospital- Deathsabroad
Information and advocacyneeds
Factsaboutthe death - Criminaljustice agencies- Coping with the aftermath - Advocacy
5. Emotional support needs 41
Seeking emotionalsupport
Differing emotionalneeds- Complexneeds- Counselling services
Contactwith othersbereaved byhomicide
6. The scope and capacity of Victim Support’s service 53
7. Victim Support and police family liaison officers 73
8. The work of probation service victim liaison officers 81
9. Service map 83
10. Recommendations 89
11. Conclusions 97
12. References 98
Appendices 101
The supportneedsofpeople bereaved byhomicide: a research report 5
6 In the aftermath
1. Introduction and background to the
research
In 2004 Victim Supportdecided to review itsservicesto people bereaved by
homicide. No service frameworkor specificservice standardsexisted for this
work, other than Victim Support’sgenericNational standards. The Victim
Supportlearning programme Supporting people bereaved byhomicide had
been in use for five years, and the service guidance currentlyin use for supporting people bereaved
byhomicide wasthe 1991 Supporting familiesof murdervictims. Itwasfeltthat Victim Support’s
servicesto bereaved familieswould benefitfrom reflecting currentresearch evidence, and a further
impetuswasthe criticism ofour servicesbysome ofthe more specialised organisationsworking
with bereaved people. We decided thatbefore reviewing our services, we would conductresearch
into the needsofpeople bereaved byhomicide thatwould also incorporate feedbackaboutour
service and a review ofour learning materials. Thisresearch coincided with the Association ofChief
Police Officers’ review ofitsFamilyLiaison Strategy; meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police have
broughttogether allthe organisationsinvolved in supporting people bereaved byhomicide with the
aim ofimproving the qualityand scope ofsupport, so thisprojecthasproved to be timely.
Purpose, scope and structure
The specificpurpose ofthe research wasto lookat:
• the service needsofpeople bereaved byhomicide
• the extentto which Victim Supportmeetsthose needs
• the extentof Victim Support’spartnership workwith other organisationsand improvementsthat
maybe needed in our relationshipswith other service providers
• whether the current Victim Supportlearning materialsare effective in equipping volunteersto
supportpeople bereaved byhomicide.
Thisresearch wascommissioned to help inform the developmentof Victim Support’sservicesto
people bereaved byhomicide. We wanted the primaryresearch to be rigorousin revealing both
whatiseffective about Victim Support’sservice and whatislesseffective and needsto be
improved. The research instrumentswere designed to elicitinformation about, in particular, any
deficitsin Victim Support’sservice, so thatthe research willhave strong practicalimplicationsfor
Victim Support.
The research comprises:
• a review ofcurrentevidence on the impactofbereavementbyhomicide, and the supportneeds
ofpeople bereaved in thisway
• a map ofexisting nationalservicesto people bereaved byhomicide
• findingsfrom interviewswith people who have been bereaved byhomicide
• findingsfrom focusgroupsof Victim Supportstaffand volunteers, probation service victim
liaison officers(VLOs) and police familyliaison officers(FLOs).
The supportneedsofpeople bereaved byhomicide: a research report 7
Thisreportbringstogether qualitative evidence from focusgroupsand in-depth interviewswith
bereaved people, and a literature review on the impactofbereavementbyhomicide. The executive
summarygivesan overview ofthe findings, and each subsequentsection addressesa main theme
arising from the research. The fullliterature review isavailable in a separate document.
Throughoutthe quotesin thisreport, people are described in termsoftheir relationship to the
victim (eg ‘father’ meansfather ofthe victim). ‘VS’ indicatesthe person quoted received support
from Victim Supportand ‘NVS’ indicatesthattheydid not. The namesofthe participantswhose
experiencesare described in the practice exampleshave been changed, with their consent.
While manyofthe findingswillbe relevantto the situation ofpeople bereaved through terrorist
activityand road death, the research did notsetoutto gather information abouttheir specific
needs.
8 In the aftermath
2. Executive summary
Practical and emotional needs
The experience ofbereavementbyhomicide isemotionallyand
psychologicallydevastating. The traumaticgriefwhich followshomicide is
unlike the griefthataccompaniesa death bynaturalcauses: those affected
experience intense and overwhelming emotionsover a long period oftime, which can make normal
functioning in everydaylife difficult. Itwasfound that:
• traumaticgriefiscomplicated byinvolvementin the criminaljustice system whose processes
can inhibitand hamper griefreactions, and exacerbate feelingsofrage and powerlessness
• differentgroupswillexperience bereavementbyhomicide in differentways, depending on
relationship to the victim, age, gender and other factors, representing a wide range ofspecific
responsesand needs
• mentalhealth, physicalhealth and relationshipsare often adverselyaffected. In particular
immediate familymembersare atriskofdeveloping post-traumaticstressdisorder (PTSD)
• people have been helped bypracticalsupportand self-help groupsin termsofgetting
information, supportthrough criminalproceedings, dealing with the media and everyday
functioning
• people benefited from being encouraged to grieve, and to acceptthatthisisnatural.
Some specificneedsthatcan arise in the immediate aftermath ofa murder were identified, such as
being informed ofthe death in a sensitive manner, and a consequentneed for advocacyand crisis
management. Bereaved familiesalso described a need for practicalsupportwith domesticmatters,
financialassistance, and information. A wide range ofemotionalsupportneedscan arise in the
immediate aftermath and over the longer term, influenced byage, gender and relationship to the
victim.
Victim Support’s services
Participantsdescribed the practicalhelp, emotionalsupport, advocacyand information thatVictim
Supporthad provided, and waysin which thissupportcould be improved. The wide range of
suggestionsreflectsthe diversityofindividualneedsthatcan arise. Victim Supportmanagersand
volunteersgave their viewson providing a service to bereaved people, training, supportand
supervision for volunteers, and other service managementissues. Managersalso discussed issues
arising from working with FLOsand other agencies.
The supportneedsofpeople bereaved byhomicide: a research report 9
Police family liaison officers
A focusgroup ofFLOsdiscussed their role and relationshipswith Victim Supportand bereaved
families. Theytended to see their workwith familiesasinformation giving, butalso feltthatthey
lacked knowledge aboutwhat Victim Supportcould offer, which wasechoed by Victim Support
managers. Some areashad good co-ordination with Victim Supportand shared information
effectively, butitwasfeltthatthiswasdue to individualofficersand thatbetter arrangementsfor
jointworking were needed.
Probation service victim liaison officers
A focusgroup ofprobation service VLOsfeltthatVictim Support’sand other agencies’ rolesneeded
to be more clearlydefined. Theymade suggestionsfor improving servicesand better liaison with
other agencies, which centred on improved communication and signposting ofservicesto bereaved
families.
Recommendations
Service delivery
Victim Supportshould:
• review the core objectivesofservicesto people bereaved byhomicide, addressing the scope of
the service, standardsand consistency, the service model, and workwith other organisations
• addressdeficienciesin qualityofservice through better training, supervision, and more effective
management
• improve the use ofresourcesbybetter targeting and more co-operative workbetween
neighbouring areas
• workwith ACPO (Association ofChiefPolice Officers) to review respective rolesin familyliaison
work, to review FLO/volunteer training, and to improve communication
• ensure bereaved people can be referred more effectively, including repeating the offer of
support
• develop and improve advocacyworkon behalfofbereaved people.
Partnership work
Victim Supportshould:
• convene meetingswith the other organisationscontacted during thisresearch to disseminate its
findingsand explore itsimplications
• consultwith SAMM and other self-help organisationsabouthow Victim Supportcan help them
• continue to develop partnership workwith other specialistservice deliveryorganisations
• ensure local Victim Supportservicesare making fulluse ofsignposting organisationssuch as
the Child BereavementNetwork.
10 In the aftermath