The Link helps child victims testify

The Thunder Bay Counselling Centre has a new tool to help children feel comfortable when being prepared to testify in criminal court.

As part of the centre’s campaign for Child and Youth Victims Awareness Week, they unveiled a new room called The Link to make children and youth feel safe when dealing with the stress of testifying.

About 120 children go through the centre’s Child Victim Witness Program per year and co-ordinator Tara Gauld said the room was designed to be a friendly and comfortable place to help with conversations that can be difficult.
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We have a ton of games and activities and crafts so there’s sort of endless options for things children can do in this room which act as really great icebreakers," she said, noting the room also has state-of-the-art video and audio capabilities for recording sessions.

Gauld said the room is used to educate their young clients about what to expect when going through the criminal justice system.

"Going through the court system if you’ve been a victim of a crime or witnessed a crime can be a very difficult experience for young people," she said. "Even for an adult if you have to testify in criminal court it’s very intimidating."

The Link is key because through the program, the counseling centre works with the children to ease their stress and fears about going into the courtroom, Gauld said.

"So when we’re doing our education sessions, if we have a place that’s really comfortable and safe then it’s gong to be easier for us to do that work with children and to make sure they’re gong to feel okay when they do have to go into the courtroom," she said.

While the room will be used by the Child Victim Witness Program, it will also be used by all programs at the Thunder Bay Counselling Centre. Funding for The Link came from the Ministry of the Attorney General.