Guidance on appropriate training and qualifications for the independent advisors must be co-designed with the expert services already in the sector who have established and grown those roles and should be drafted in such a way that does not discredit the specialism of other advocacy models or those specialising in particular areas, where training and provision may differ to reflect the diverse needs of their clients. We further recommend that the guidance stipulates that ISVAs and IDVAs must ...

Guidance on appropriate training and qualifications for the independent advisors must be co-designed with the expert services already in the sector who have established and grown those roles and should be drafted in such a way that does not discredit the specialism of other advocacy models or those specialising in particular areas, where training and provision may differ to reflect the diverse needs of their clients. We further recommend that the guidance stipulates that ISVAs and IDVAs must be independent from the police and that access to their services is not restricted to people engaged in the criminal justice system. Type: recommendation | Number: 38 | Paragraph: 127 | Response status: accepted Government response: 64. We agree with the Committee’s recommendation to co-design statutory guidance with support sector experts. The MoJ has already begun to engage with relevant stakeholders and will continue to do so to ensure that the guidance does not inadvertently disrupt or discre