Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Act 2025

2 Functions

(1) The Commissioner’s general function is to promote and support the rights and interests of victims and witnesses.

(2) In exercising the general function, the Commissioner is to—

(a) engage, in such manner as the Commissioner considers appropriate, with—

(i) victims and witnesses,

(ii) persons providing victim support services,

(b) take such steps as the Commissioner considers appropriate to raise awareness of and promote—

(i) the interests of victims and witnesses,

(ii) the Victims’ Charter (see section 9),

(c) monitor compliance with—

(i) standards of service set and published under section 2 of the Victims and Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2014 (“the 2014 Act”),

(ii) the Victims’ Code for Scotland prepared and published under section 3B of that Act,

(d) consider the provision of information to victims and other persons and the making of representations under Part 2 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003,

(e) promote best practice, in particular trauma-informed practice, by—

(i) criminal justice bodies,

(ii) persons providing victim support services,

(f) undertake and commission research in order to—

(i) produce the Commissioner’s annual report under section 18,

(ii) make recommendations, in relation to any matter relevant to the Commissioner’s general function, to criminal justice bodies and to persons providing victim support services.