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Applications will open in October 2024.
About this project
Stay Safe East is an organisation run by disabled people, providing specialist and holistic advocacy and support services to disabled people from diverse communities in London who are victims/survivors of domestic or sexual violence, hate crime, harassment and other forms of abuse.
Founded in 2010 as a local East London service, in 2018 we extended our services across London, as partners in the London Victims and Witnesses Service (LVWS) led by Victim Support, and in Ascent Plus led by Solace. We are also part of the CATCH partnership, a London-wide alliance of the key organisations working on hate crime.
Our aims:
To support deaf and disabled people who experience or have experienced violence and abuse, hate crime, domestic or sexual violence, carer abuse and others forms of human rights abuses
To ensure that disabled and deaf people get the justice they deserve
To provide an independent, accessible, third party reporting site for hate crime and domestic violence
To inform disabled and Deaf people of their rights to be safe, and to encourage them to report incidents and crimes
To build the capacity of our partner organisations (police, voluntary sector, housing, local authority, Crown prosecution service) to provide an inclusive, appropriate service and to deliver justice to disabled and deaf people
To bring about change in national and other policies on supporting victims of crime
To act as a model for good practice
The role
Providing support to disabled victims of hate crime and/or other forms of crime by:
Listening to the person’s experiences and offering access to emotional support
Informing the client about their rights
Advocating on behalf of each client or supporting them to advocate for themselves with statutory and voluntary agencies
Carrying out risk assessments and drawing up support plan with the client; where needed
Ensuring clients access and communication needs are met
Arranging meetings with clients as necessary
Keeping in regular contact with each client to provide reassurance and updates on progress
Negotiating with statutory and voluntary agencies to ensure our client’s access, communication, support and cultural needs are met in line with the Victim’s Code and Equalities law and that other professionals understand their needs e.g. around Deaf, Blind culture or communication with people with learning difficulties
Referring the client for support relating to benefits/entitlements
Supporting client to access social care or mental health support, equipment and other support
Supporting the client to make or attend appointments with solicitors, health, housing, adult social care etc.
Supporting clients in police interviews and in Court
Liaising with statutory agencies to ensure that action is taken to benefit the client
Any other reasonable tasks as required
To work in partnership with other agencies and where appropriate refer disabled people to other voluntary agencies, disability and other specialist support services
To attend professionals’ meetings on behalf of clients
To support clients to speak out for themselves at meetings
To make client referrals to and present cases at adult or children’s safeguarding, or other statutory meetings
Training and Supervision Provided
- Training will be provided on disability awareness, understanding hate crime, safeguarding practice, domestic abuse, and civil and criminal legal remedies training.
- In addition, all students will receive the CAJ Mandatory Volunteer training, which covers data protection and confidentiality, working with vulnerable clients, professional conduct and regulation, self-care, and our expectations of CAJ volunteers.
Time commitment
- 1.5 days per week
Pro Bono Skills Development Framework
The Centre for Access to Justice now offers all students engaged in voluntary pro bono the opportunity to participate in the Pro Bono Skills Development Framework. This framework allows you to reflect on the skills gained during your placement, aligned with the Aurora Competence Framework. Completing it earns you a Certificate of Commitment to Pro Bono, acknowledging your dedication and skill development. Your participation will help you document and showcase the valuable competencies you've developed, however, please note that participation in the PBSDF scheme is entirely voluntary and will not affect your placement in any way.
Who can apply
- Year 3/4 LLB students or any LLM students
How to apply
Applications for this opportunity will open in October 2024. Please apply via the online application form.
When applying, please make sure you have completed the CAJ Equality and Diversity Monitoring Questionnaire. You only need to complete this once per academic year.
Should you have any questions, please contact Annika Melwani at annika.melwani@ucl.ac.uk.