News and Knowledge

Female Sexual Violence – The Continuing Epidemic

Domestic abuse in the UK rose by nearly a quarter in the year ending March 2019, while referrals of cases from the police to the Crown Prosecution Service fell by 11%.   746,219 domestic abuse-related crimes were recorded in total, an increase of 24% when compared to the previous year.[i] The statistics recorded for domestic…

Family of Grace Millane Denied CICA Compensation

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) has once again come under scrutiny. This time, the Government’s compensation scheme has been criticised for the way it handles families of British people murdered outside of the UK and European Union.   This follows the news that the family of backpacker Grace Millane were informed that they would…

6.2 Million Child Abuse Victims in England and Wales – Statistics

While the majority of the time TV soaps involve themselves in storylines that are wacky or outlandish, they also have the ability to draw people’s attention towards more serious and relevant issues. Long-running TV soap Emmerdale is no different and is currently the process of going through a child abuse storyline. In this, a character…

Survivors of abuse are being denied compensation due to their past criminal convictions

Many of the brave individuals who are reporting their historical abuse to the police and, subsequently bringing a claim to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), are being denied remuneration due to their previous convictions.   The CICA was set up as a way to compensate those blameless victims of violent crime who have no…

Domestic Violence-Related Murders at Five-Year High

Murders stemming from domestic violence have hit a five-year high in the UK.   Research done by the BBC has found that the number of people killed as a result of domestic violence in the UK is now at its highest level since 2014. In 2018, 173 people were killed in domestic violence-related homicides –…

The Flaws of the CICA

The Flaws of the CICA (Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority) – Why the Review is Sorely Needed   £244,000 in compensation has been withheld from 103 victims of rape and sexual assault in the past two years by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA). [i] In the past five years, 253 victims had payments cut due…

Carl Beech – From Accuser to Accused

In November 2014, an investigation was launched into ‘possible homicide’ and a potential paedophile ring involving senior military, politics and law enforcement figures.[i] A ‘key witness’ spoke to police with regards to this and went to the press to document exactly what events had transpired. Under the alias ‘Nick’, the alleged victim gave details on…

CICA’s Role In Supporting Victims Of Terrorism – A Follow Up

ARTICLE BY DARYL SMITH Late last year, I put together an article on how the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) held a responsibility to compensate the survivors of terrorism when they had nowhere else to turn. The CICA are able to provide compensation to ease the process of moving on after such atrocities occur. To…

Are You Listening? – Survivors are Finding Their Voice

Leaving Neverland and Surviving R-Kelly are two documentaries gaining traction in the press due to allegations they make against well-known celebrities.

CICA and the way it can impact you – Part 4: A night out

Fuelled by alcohol and a sense of false bravado, individuals gain the confidence to prey on other drunken people who have no intention of causing trouble.