The Consent Coalition meets the DPP

Today the Director of Public Prosecutions, Max Hill QC, came to Nottingham to find out about the Consent Coalition.

Max Hill QC came to Nottingham today to meet with the East Midlands CPS and asked to meet with members of the Consent Coalition to find out about our work.  The Consent Coalition is the public-facing side of the Nottingham’s Sexual Violence Action Network (SVAN) a group of statutory services and support organisations who all work professionally with survivors of sexual violence.

A round-table discussion was held at the East Midlands CPS, where we were able to talk about how we work together to improve outcomes for survivors of sexual violence.  This includes being able to share anonymised feedback on the experiences of survivors in a way that is open and seeks to find solutions where problems have occurred.  Nottingham is believed to be the first area to work to this model which involves putting the survivor at the centre of how services work together.

As part of this meeting we were also able to ask Max Hill QC about how the CPS works and provide feedback on the justice system.  The Director of Public Prosecutions was also interested to receive copies of our Your Journey booklet which is a brief guide for survivors on the support and reporting options available to them following an assault.  This guide, which has been written by several members of the coalition with feedback from survivors, is already being used widely in Nottingham.

Max Hill QC said in a tweet it ‘was a pleasure to spend time with @ConsentInNotts today. The guide for survivors of sexual violence is excellent.’  He thanked the CPS East Midlands for their contribution to the coalition adding ‘If you are a survivor, pleased read the guide and make contact, your voice will be heard.’

Coalition members who were able to make it to the meeting were pleased to show how working together is starting to get good results for survivors in our area, which includes early referral into support agencies.

Get involved

As well as working to support survivors, the Consent Coalition raises awareness on Consent.  Information and resources are free to download from our website, where you can also find our Your Journey booklet.

We are also active on social media.  Stand with us and say that Nottingham does not tolerate any form of sexual violence.