How End GBVF 100-Day Challenge court teams created victim centred courts
Why this is important
Courts exist to protect citizens. They are often the starting point for a victim to become a survivor, where they start their healing journey after a traumatic experience. Entering into a court case, victims often wait in anticipation for the outcome of their case. It can be an anxiety-inducing experience for victims, often having to recount moments from their traumatic incident.
With this in mind, the End GBVF 100-Day Challenge court teams wanted to relook at the design of the entire court experience for visitors (referred to as ‘clients’ by Ambassadors) so that it alleviated anxiety and trauma, rather than adding to it.
Reducing waiting time in court
First things first. Teams understand that trust in the court and justice system as a whole is important. It is important for clients to know what they will get supported when they go to court without having to wait hours, or not being helped at all because the court does not have capacity. Importantly, the team in Mankweng court halved the waiting time for clients to be assisted in their court. When the presiding officers in the criminal courtroom were done with the day’s assigned cases, they would come down to the domestic violence courtroom to assist with cases. This increased capacity allowed court proceedings to flow quicker.
Improving signage and navigation
A court environment has many different elements, there are waiting rooms, different courtrooms, support areas and more. Very simply to improve navigation to the different court areas, teams colour painted footprints leading to different areas. For the children’s court, a specific colour paint was used. This was done for all other court rooms.
Staff training and security
Along with navigation, all court staff were briefed on the challenge and trained with the appropriate interpersonal communication tools. At many courts, the security outside of the court was increased so that clients were further encouraged to come.
Improving the amenities
All waiting areas were equipped with drinking water tanks. To support children, many court teams completely overhauled their waiting areas and support rooms to provide a child friendly environment.
Measuring client satisfaction
Central to their approach was the gathering of feedback from court visitors through surveys, aimed at gauging the effectiveness of their interventions.
In a remarkable display of commitment, Polokwane, Seshego, and Mankweng courts achieved an impressive 78% satisfaction rate among court visitors, surpassing the initial target of 70%. Meanwhile, Mahwelereng, Modimolle, Witbank, and Sekhukhune magistrate courts witnessed a substantial increase in client satisfaction, rising from 45% to 65% over the four-week period.