Gloucestershire Victims’ Needs Assessment 2025

Task

In 2025, the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) for Gloucestershire commissioned TONIC to carry out a Victims Needs Assessment to inform the next commissioning cycle of their multi-crime service that supports victims of crime across the county – Gloucestershire Victim Services. The needs assessment was also to designed to provide an update from the previous Victims Needs Assessment completed in 2018.  

The aim of the needs assessment was to understand the scale and nature of victim need in Gloucestershire, assess how effectively the current model meets that need, and identify opportunities to strengthen the overall support landscape. In addition to examining the core multi-crime service offer, the assessment also explored a number of specific priority areas identified by the OPCC, including support for children and young victims, hate crime, non-domestic abuse stalking, anti-social behaviour, restorative justice and preparedness for major incidents.  

Our Approach

TONIC used a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative and qualitative evidence. This included a review of national and local literature, analysis of service activity and outcome data, as well as primary research involving surveys, interviews and focus groups with victims, service users and professionals across the criminal justice, voluntary and statutory sectors. The mixed-methods approach was used to reflect both lived experience and operational perspectives from across Gloucestershire’s victim support landscape. In total, 76 individuals responded to the online survey and 36 took part in an interview or focus group. Participants included victims of crime, frontline practitioners, service providers, police representatives, and wider partners.   

Outcome

Following thematic analysis of the findings and data analysis, TONIC produced a detailed report exploring the following areas: 

  • System context and local landscape 

  • Victim support needs and access 

  • Experiences of Gloucestershire Victim Services and multi-agency working 

  • Police contact and communication 

  • Young victims 

As a result of the research findings, TONIC developed 10 recommendations to be considered by the OPCC and a further 5 recommendations for the future commissioned service provider.