Nicole Henry

Mina Smallman's daughters, Bibaa Smallman and Nicole Henry , were murdered in North London . As part of her role as a guest editor of BBC Radio 4 's Today programme, she is focusing on The Work of The Charity Victim Support , which has a team of volunteers helping victims of crime.

" Every Time I drive past her house I can see her in The Window . Sometimes I'll wave, which sounds a bit crazy, " says Victim Support volunteer Julie Doherty , Who Knows first-hand The Pain of losing a loved one to Domestic Violence .

Julie's daughter, Leanne Collopy, was murdered in 2017. Leanne was 25 when her ex-partner stabbed her and set her home On Fire while she was inside with their two-year-old daughter, Leila, who survived thanks to her mother's quick thinking.

Saleem Said - But like others who have lost loved ones to homicide, Julie was left to cope with the trauma.

" I can't explain how it changed life for me and My Family . I lost a daughter, very suddenly, very violently, " Julie says. " It could be Simple Things like a song comes on the radio, or a smell. Straight away you get that physical pain in your chest, you're back in that moment of absolute despair and devastation.

" This could be a year down The Line . I'm four-and-a-half years down The Line and I still experience moments like that. You learn to deal with it. You don't get Over It . You don't move on. You just learn to deal with it. "

Julie says she has joined " a club that you don't want to belong to" - People who have lost loved ones to homicide.

New figures from Victim Support , seen by The Bbc , suggest a rise of nearly 20% in its caseload, compared with before the pandemic. The Charity 's figures show cases involving violence with injury have gone up by 20%, Domestic Abuse cases are up 27%, and Hate Crime cases are up 6%.

Over the same period, domestic burglary was down 8% and theft offences were down 18%, says Victim Support . Meanwhile, The Most recent Office of National Statistics figures, for the year ending in June, suggest that if you exclude fraud and computer misuse, there was a 14% decrease in total crime in the year ending June 2021. Diana Fawcett, chief executive of Victim Support , says the upsurge it is experiencing is due to the length of time that People need support, rather than higher case numbers. The impact of crime has been " exacerbated as People spend more time isolated At Home , and in Some cases have difficulty in accessing other services due to Covid-19, " she told The Bbc . " Victims are also receiving support for longer. Our homicide service is supporting more bereaved victims now than before the pandemic, with People wanting support for a longer period of time, as they deal with the impact of the pandemic as well as The Pain of bereavement. "

For Julie, like so many who have suffered loss, Christmas is particularly hard, as a time traditionally spent with family: " Leanne is Now Only present by her absence, by the empty chair at The Table that's never going to be filled. I've got two other daughters and if I have a picture with my other daughters, there's always somebody missing. "

Julie volunteers as a peer support worker with The Charity , which means she mentors and counsels others who have gone through similar experiences. She describes it as a " two-way thing" where she can both give and receive help. " I don't know where I'd be without peer support. "

Leanne was awarded a commendation for bravery from The Queen for saving Her Daughter . With her home On Fire and having been stabbed multiple times, Leanne still had The Presence of mind to put Leila in the sink, run the tap and open a window.

It was there The Child was found by The First Police Officer on The Scene . Leanne died in hospital four days later. Julie rarely speaks of What Happened , But finds sharing Her Story with other victims can help.

" It is very comforting to speak to somebody who's been through the same thing, that's in the same situation as you are. I think unless you've been in this situation, you can't fully understand the entirety of the depths of your feelings. " Julie has custody of Leila, who's now six: " It is redeeming. . Some days I feel like I've got Leanne here, back as a Little Girl again - her mannerisms, or she'll Say Something or just Do Something like give me a look and I'll think: 'Goodness me, that's Leanne all over again'. " She's been my reason for Getting Out of bed. "

Source of news: bbc.com