Victims and Survivors of Crime Week Funding Guide

Introduction:

The Victims and Survivors of Crime Week is an annual outreach initiative of the Justice Canada Policy Centre for Victim Issues (PCVI). PCVI works to give victims and survivors a more effective voice in the criminal justice system by pursuing a range of activities and initiatives.

The goal of Victims and Survivors of Crime Week is to raise awareness about the issues facing victims and survivors and about the services, assistance and laws in place to help victims, survivors, and their families. Victims and Survivors of Crime Week is also a time to acknowledge the work of service providers and their dedication to assisting victims and survivors of crime and their families.

Theme:

The theme for Victims and Survivors of Crime Week is "The Power of Collaboration”.

Through the power of collaboration:

• Canada has made significant advances within the criminal justice system and victim services field to increase collaboration to ensure that the system is responsive to the various needs of victims of crime;
• There is a continued need within the criminal justice system and victim services field for increased cross-sector collaboration, as well as enhanced coordination, partnerships, and multi-disciplinary responses to better support victims; and
• More can be accomplished to address gaps in the continuum of services and to break down barriers for better access to the meaningful supports that victims depend on throughout the criminal justice process. 

Victims and Survivors of Crime Week Funding:

Funding for Victim and Survivors of Crime Week projects will be available from Justice Canada's Victims Fund. All projects must take place during the official dates of Victims and Survivors of Crime Week. Funding application activities must support the objective of Victims and Survivors of Crime Week, which is to raise awareness about the issues facing victims and survivors of crime as well as about the services, assistance and laws in place to help victims, survivors and their families.

Justice Canada will only consider one (1) funding application per organization. Funding of up to a maximum of $10,000 per organization will be available for Victim and Survivors of Crime Week projects from Justice Canada's Victims Fund.

Some examples of events and activities that could be organized during Victims and Survivors of Crime Week include:

• Workshop or information sessions on victim issues or relevant topics;
• Public awareness events (e.g. volunteer recognition event, information kiosk, etc.);
• Social media campaigns and electronic resources on services available to victims, survivors and their families and/or victim issues;
• Training for justice system professionals on victim needs;
• Special issue of a newsletter dedicated to Victims and Survivors of Crime Week; and,
• Radio, newspaper or television ads promoting Victims and Survivors of Crime Week and/or providing information on services for victims and survivors of crime.

For more event ideas and organization tips and promotional planning resources, consult the Event Planning section of the Victims and Survivors of Crime Week website.

Examples of Eligible and Ineligible Expenses:

The following are typically considered eligible for funding:

• Contract fee expenses (e.g. contract for speaker fees);
• Salaries (coordinator/facilitator);
• Cost of supplies/materials/services;
• Facility and audio visual rental expenses (including technology costs for hosting virtual events);
• Reasonable hospitality costs for special events;
• If public health guidance permits, travel/accommodation/incidental expenses to bring in professionals, such as workshop facilitators, panelists and presenters, for presentation or training purposes; and,
• Advertising costs.

Ineligible expenses include the following:

• Stand-alone meal expenses, unless they include speeches/presentations focused on victim and survivor awareness and victim services;
• Gifts, alcohol, entertainment fees and souvenirs;
• Participant travel/accommodation/incidental expenses to attend Victims and Survivors Week events;
• Purchase of commercial films and materials (even though related to victimization or surviving crime) for showing and distribution as part of Victims and Survivors Week events;
• Renovations, repairs and leasehold improvements;
• Capital expenses (e.g., purchase of equipment, buildings); and,
• Satellite events of victim-related organizations. A satellite event is a meeting organized by an organization or group to coincide with the events of Victims and Survivors of Crime Week (e.g., organization's annual meeting). Satellite events differ from Victims Week-related events and activities, as they focus on the specific mandate or project of an organization or group.

How to Apply for Funding:

To request a Funding Application Form, please contact victimsweek-semainedesvictimes@justice.gc.ca. An alternative format of the Funding Application Form for applicants with accessibility requirements is available on our website: HTML Version.

Selection Criteria:

1. The funding application form must be completed in full.
2. All Victims and Survivors of Crime Week projects must take place during the official dates of Victims and Survivors of Crime Week.
3. All expenses listed in the application must be eligible for funding (please see the Victims and Survivors of Crime Week funding "FAQs" for examples of eligible and ineligible expenses).
4. All expenses must be reasonable and customary, and must demonstrate good value for Canadians.
5. All applicants approved for funding must be registered for direct deposit with Justice Canada to receive their payments.
6. The proposed project must support the objective of Victims and Survivors of Crime Week, which is to raise awareness about the issues facing victims and survivors of crime as well as about the services, assistance and laws in place to help victims, survivors and their families.

   The following two factors may also be taken into account by the selection committee when reviewing the funding applications:

7. The selection committee may take geographic representation into account during the review process.
8. The selection committee may undertake a global assessment of all proposals in a given jurisdiction to ensure variety and broad reach, and to avoid too much similarity / duplication in projects.

Maximum Amount of Funding:

Funding of up to a maximum of $10,000 per organization will be available for Victim and Survivors of Crime Week projects from Justice Canada's Victims Fund.

As funding is limited each year, not all eligible applications can be approved.

Important Information for Applicants

Funding Applications must be submitted by the deadline for applications. Late applications will not be accepted.

It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure their funding application has been received by the Department of Justice. If you do not receive a confirmation e-mail within five (5) business days after submitting your application electronically to victimsweek-semainedesvictimes@justice.gc.ca, please call (613) 941-4193 for assistance.

Additional Information:

If you have any questions that are not answered in the package of documents that you have received with this application, please email us at: victimsweek-semainedesvictimes@justice.gc.ca.

Official Languages

In support of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act, the Department is committed to facilitating the participation of official language minority communities and their organizations in the development and assessment of the Department's policies, programs and services having significant impact on the development of the communities; and to take measures to ensure that the Department of Justice’s programs and services reach official language minority communities. In the context of project funding, these measures include:

• outreach to official language minority communities to enhance their understanding of the Department of Justice funding programs; and
• encouraging contacts between organizations that are receiving financial assistance and official language minority organizations/groups to ensure that the needs of these communities are taken into consideration in relation to the proposed projects to be considered for Department of Justice Canada funding.

Contact Information

Where is more information available?

For more information on how to apply for Victims and Survivors of Crime Week funding, contact us:

Victims Fund Manager
Programs Branch
Department of Justice Canada
284 Wellington Street, 6th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H8
Telephone: General Victims Fund: (613) 941-4193
E-mail: victimsweek-semainedesvictimes@justice.gc.ca 

Date modified:

2023-01-13