Victims Guidance (January 2025 v2.0)
Source: gov.uk (2025-02-21)

The latest revised guidance on victims.

The guidance provides information on the Parole Board’s duties towards victims under the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime which came into force on 1 April 2021 and changes introduced since the guidance was last published in February 2020. Topics covered include:
- Relevant legal frameworks
- The Probation Victim Contact Scheme
- Victim Personal Statements
- Reading out Victim Personal Statements at parole oral hearings
- Observing a parole oral hearing
- Summary decisions
- Routes of challenge
Following the publication of the guidance two position statements related to victim observers were issued to take account of feedback:
- Statement one provides clarity about when a victim may need to make a new observer application
- Statement two sets out a proposed change in our position on victims taking notes when observing an oral hearing.
The Parole Board has also published the following documents:

Victims and Family and Friends of Victims – parole hearings: Information Leaflet (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.publishing.service.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fuploads%2Fsystem%2Fuploads%2Fattachment_data%2Ffile%2F1052430%2FParole_Board_Victim_Information_Leaflet_-_March_2021.pdf&data=05%7C02%7Ccomms%40paroleboard.gov.uk%7C4456d4cded7c48c7761908dd50f691c9%7Ca486aad4924c42cc99678c76faa2ed18%7C0%7C0%7C638755742206562464%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C4000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=LE616ZbjxTR8vgCs2OxIXHGxgipW4tp71atAc3RdpyA%3D&reserved=0)

Victim Liaison Officers – aide memoire on parole (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.publishing.service.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fuploads%2Fsystem%2Fuploads%2Fattachment_data%2Ffile%2F1052432%2FParole_Board_Aide_Memoire_for_VLO_-_March_2021.pdf&data=05%7C02%7Ccomms%40paroleboard.gov.uk%7C4456d4cded7c48c7761908dd50f691c9%7Ca486aad4924c42cc99678c76faa2ed18%7C0%7C0%7C638755742206576100%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C4000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=DdCb93Ep17u3Z2PFs3I6EVPnEGcFYYXt%2BBjj7Unq1RY%3D&reserved=0)

More detailed information about considering victim related licence conditions can be found in the Guidance on Licence Conditions (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Flicence-conditions-guidance&data=05%7C02%7Ccomms%40paroleboard.gov.uk%7C4456d4cded7c48c7761908dd50f691c9%7Ca486aad4924c42cc99678c76faa2ed18%7C0%7C0%7C638755742206589460%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C4000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=DpwcHim%2FtPyxxU5KkMz19E161hGcMec%2F8bqTxuFZ2SM%3D&reserved=0).

Other relevant guidance that may be helpful:

The Prisoners (Disclosure of Information About Victims) Act guidance (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Fthe-prisoners-disclosure-of-information-about-victims-act-guidance&data=05%7C02%7Ccomms%40paroleboard.gov.uk%7C4456d4cded7c48c7761908dd50f691c9%7Ca486aad4924c42cc99678c76faa2ed18%7C0%7C0%7C638755742206602660%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C4000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=nxs5vnXfKJcohoe%2B0pUFHx7HgwA3ixWDpNUacgTK%2Bgk%3D&reserved=0)

Parole Board member guidance on Restorative Justice (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Fparole-board-member-guidance-on-restorative-justice&data=05%7C02%7Ccomms%40paroleboard.gov.uk%7C4456d4cded7c48c7761908dd50f691c9%7Ca486aad4924c42cc99678c76faa2ed18%7C0%7C0%7C638755742206615856%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C4000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=xKYC5xxmw5MOjiI8e13i%2F0xDIIyYmI4ACAHRCOz1eJg%3D&reserved=0)

Observer guidance - private hearings (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fpublications%2Fobservers-at-parole-board-oral-hearings&data=05%7C02%7Ccomms%40paroleboard.gov.uk%7C4456d4cded7c48c7761908dd50f691c9%7Ca486aad4924c42cc99678c76faa2ed18%7C0%7C0%7C638755742206629045%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C4000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=g4P3UZxgBQW%2FnNB6sAtG4UfMRmobbeAnMDcSACax2zI%3D&reserved=0)

More information for victims can be read here: Our Commitment to Victims of Crime (https://eur03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fguidance%2Fthe-parole-boards-commitment-to-victims-of-crime&data=05%7C02%7Ccomms%40paroleboard.gov.uk%7C4456d4cded7c48c7761908dd50f691c9%7Ca486aad4924c42cc99678c76faa2ed18%7C0%7C0%7C638755742206643849%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C4000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=jXlD0FVgrzKLdQ1r7c65%2FP76zM0cVPJFdBvV6jLuaTI%3D&reserved=0)