Making Your Voice Heard

Particularly in the cases of individual murders, it can be difficult to get your voice heard. One family is much easier to ignore than a group of victims. A case that is ‘less high profile’ than another, might sadly end up being treated differently.

There may therefore be occasions when you need to raise the profile of your case. The two main methods for this are through the media and via your MP.

How to find your MP (Member of Parliament):  parliament.uk

Contact your Councillors, MP, MSP for free: writetothem.com 

Find out what your MP is doing in your name, read debates and sign up for email alerts: theyworkforyou.com  

MPs can raise matters in the House of Commons on behalf of their constituents. They can do this by asking parliamentary questions (PQs). If your MP holds a ministerial post in the current government, s/he cannot ask questions on your behalf. Another member of your family, not in the same constituency as you, may be able to ask his/her MP to ask a PQ.

How to find a Lord: writetothem.com/lords (Lords are not elected and do not have a duty to reply to the public but they may be able to help or influence national legislation and other Parliamentary matters. Lords do not have constituencies like MPs, so you may contact any of them). 

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman looks into complaints where an individual believes there has been injustice or hardship because an organisation has not acted properly or fairly or has given a poor service and not put things right. 

Media
Often, communicating with the media in a controlled way can satisfy their demand for information and lessen any sense of intrusion. There will be times when providing information can lead to more coverage and interest; this might be beneficial if you are trying to raise awareness of your case, but in other circumstances it might cause distress.

If you do decide to engage with the media, think about whether you want to speak to them directly, or whether you wish to appoint a trusted friend or family member or even a PR consultant. There may be situations where it is advisable to exercise caution when there is an ongoing investigation; and you may wish to take legal advice about this.

Issuing a statement and answering questions for a limited time is often a good approach. Releasing photographs will also help you maintain control of which images are used and help avoid the use of photographs that you might not like which have been sourced from friends or social media.

IPSO (Independent Press Standards Organisation) have published this guidance which explains what to expect when UK newspapers and magazines report a death or an inquest.

If you need any guidance on handling the media, please contact us.