Our Team
Victims of Crime Commissioner
Hello. My name is Heidi Yates and I am the Victims of Crime Commissioner for the ACT. I also oversee the day-to-day functioning of Victim Support ACT, including the Victims of Crime Financial Assistance Scheme.
My role is to promote and protect the rights of people who experience crime and to ensure they can access the support they need.
My advocacy and education role includes:
- advocating for individuals who experience crime
- advocating for reforms to the justice system
- consulting with victims of crime and promoting reforms to meet their needs; and
- advising the ACT Government on matters in relation to victims of crime in the ACT
I also support collaboration between agencies in the ACT, for example:
- I am the Chair of the Family Violence Intervention Program Coordinating Committee.
- I am a member of the Domestic Violence Prevention Council.
- I contribute to the work of the ACT Victims Advisory Board.
It is my job to work with the criminal justice system to ensure that people who experience crime are treated in accordance with the Charter of Rights for Victims of Crime (the charter). I do this by:
- Trying to resolve concerns that victims of crime raise with me about their treatment by police, prosecutions, the courts or corrective services; and
- Referring complaints about non-compliance with the charter to the appropriate complaints entity.
If you think we can help you or you would like to know more, contact us.
The Victims of Crime Commissioner is an independent statutory office, which means that we are funded by the ACT Government, but independent from the Government.
The Legislation that describes what I do includes:
- Human Rights Commission Act 2015
- Victims of Crime Act 1994
- Victims of Crime Regulation 2000
- Victims of Crime (Financial Assistance) Act 2016
- Victims of Crime (Financial Assistance) Regulation 2016
- Domestic Violence Agencies Act 1986
- Mental Health Act 2015
Volunteer with Us
Victim Support ACT engages community volunteers to deliver the VSACT Volunteer Program and Court Support.
The volunteers will be assessed for suitability and assigned to roles that suit. The majority of volunteers with VSACT provide company and basic information to victims of crime in the ACT Courts. Other duties that volunteers assist with include:
- Orienting victims to the court and surrounds
- Attending meetings with the victim and the prosecutor
- Attending the police station with a victim to report a crime
- Assisting a victim to prepare an application to the Financial Assistance Scheme
- Assisting a victim to prepare a victim impact statement
- Providing research and administrative support to the VOCC and VSACT teams.
Court support volunteers are provided with several days of training and peer to peer supervision prior to providing one-on-one support to victims.
Training and recruitment usually happens once per year. You can register your interest for the volunteer program by sending an email to: VSACT.VolunteerProgram@act.gov.au