Services & Programs

Victim Services of Huron County is a community based service, which is dedicated to providing short term emotional support, practical assistance and community referral to victims of crime, trauma and tragic circumstance in partnership with community and emergency services. Volunteer Crisis Responders provide for the victim's immediate needs and offer referrals to existing community services if longer term support is required.

Emotional and practical support is given by specially trained community volunteers, Crisis Responders, who are on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. With the consent of the victim, the attending police or emergency personnel call the Crisis Responders to attend on-scene to help the victims cope with their crisis.

Support will be provided for

 Abuse of the elderly
 Motor vehicle collisions
 Assault
 Break & enter
 Criminal harassment/stalking
 Death notification
 Disaster
 Domestic violence
 Fatalities
 Fire
 Family occurrence
 Homicide
 Missing persons/abductions
 Personal crisis
 Robbery
 Sexual assault
 Sudden death
 Suicide or attempted suicide
 Any situation where someone has been affected by a crime or tragic circumstance

In addition to emotional support, Crisis Responders may provide transportation to emergency services, help clean up, and make phone calls or other arrangements on request. If the victim requires long term support, the Crisis Responders will provide information and referral options for further assistance.

 VICTIM QUICK RESPONSE PROGRAM (VQRP

VQRP is administered by Victim Services providers in the province of Ontario and established by the Ministry of the Attorney General to provide timely assistance to victims of the most violent crime.

VQRP offers immediate assistance to provide limited financial support to victims of violent crime that include homicide, serious physical assault, domestic violence, sexual assault and hate crime.

 VQRP comprises three components that will provide financial assistance for:

A) Short-term immediate counselling services

B) Funding for Funeral expenses for victims of homicide and;

C) Funding for immediate emergency expenses

 Funding for immediate emergency expenses need to be under one of the following five categories:

1. Crime scene clean-up where the use of a specialized service is required;

2. Emergency home repairs to secure the premises for the immediate safety of victims;

3. Transportation costs for the most economical and practical means of travel to support a victim who has suffered emotional and/or physical harm as a result of violent crime or, for a family member to identify a victim of homicide;

4. Emergency child care and dependent care for elderly or special needs dependants to support a victim who has suffered emotional and/or physical harm as a result of violent crime or, to enable a family member to identify a victim of homicide;

5. Emergency accommodation and meals where there are no secure housing options available.

OBJECTIVES OF THE VQRP PROGRAM

 To provide assistance to victims in the immediate aftermath of a violent crime

 To lessen the impact of violent crime through immediate support services to victims

 To increase the immediate safety of victims of violent crime

Referrals 

 Eligible applicants may be referred to a Victim Service provider by a police service after a crime has been reported or, in the case of domestic violence and sexual assault, by the community agency providing support services to victims and to which the crime was reported. Eligible applicants may also contact the Victim Service provider directly however, a Criminal Code offence must have occurred and been reported to a Police Service or community agency providing service to victims of domestic violence or sexual assault in the province of Ontario.

The premise of the program is immediate support. In order to be eligible for the program, the referral needs to be made to Victim Services within 14 days of the offence being reported