Criminal justice responses to victim- survivors of sexual violence with learning disabilities: Findings from a local study in North East England.
Jobe, Alison and Williams, Helen (2025) Criminal justice responses to victim- survivors of sexual violence with learning disabilities: Findings from a local study in North East England. Journal of Gender Based Violence. ISSN 2398-6808 (In Press)
Item Type: | Article |
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Abstract
This paper presents findings from research that explored local criminal justice responses to people with learning disabilities reporting sexual violence. The paper presents data collected in interviews with victim-survivors and stakeholders. Findings suggest that the criminal justice system creates key barriers to justice for people with learning disabilities/ autism when reporting sexual violence. Barriers include learning disabilities not being recognised or understood, a lack of effective communication, and a lack of appropriate support, alongside people with learning disabilities/ autism not being viewed as ‘credible witnesses’ by the police or courts. The article concludes that current working practices are inherently discriminatory to those with atypical frames of reference and need adjustment to better support victim-survivors of sexual violence who have additional needs.
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More Information
Depositing User: Helen Williams |
Identifiers
Item ID: 18902 |
ISSN: 2398-6808 |
URI: http://sure.sunderland.ac.uk/id/eprint/18902 |
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Catalogue record
Date Deposited: 28 Mar 2025 09:48 |
Last Modified: 03 Jun 2025 15:56 |
Author: |
Helen Williams
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Author: | Alison Jobe |
University Divisions
Faculty of Education, Society and Creative Industries > School of Social Sciences and LawResearch centres/institutes > CASS Centre for Applied Social Sciences
Subjects
Social Sciences > CriminologySocial Sciences
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