The Archers trial shows how daunting court can be — and how important the right support is.

The long-running Helen and Rob Titchener storyline in BBC Radio 4’s The Archers has had significant public impact, bringing the devastating impact of domestic abuse — especially coercive control — into the spotlight.

As well as generating widespread media coverage, it’s helped to raise over £130,000 for Refuge and the national domestic violence helpline run by Refuge and Women’s Aid.

The trial (which began yesterday) and the build-up have brought another issue to the fore — the huge emotional impact of a court case, both on individual witnesses and on families and communities.

We’ve seen how many of those involved feel anxious or scared about giving evidence. Seen through their eyes, court can seem daunting, with unfamiliar processes and rules.

The Citizens Advice Witness Service helps people like this every day.

We offer free and independent support to witnesses in every criminal court across England and Wales, whether they’re speaking for the defence or the prosecution.

Our volunteers are specially-trained to support witnesses throughout the process — before, during and after giving evidence.

Here’s how we go about it.

We offer witnesses emotional support as well as practical information

As soon as witnesses are referred to us, we make initial contact with them to talk about how we can help. We can’t talk about the evidence, but we can explain what’s going to happen on the day and how.

Giving evidence can be a difficult and emotional experience, and the court process itself can seem daunting. In life, as in the Archers, many people have no idea what to expect and this can make them nervous about going to court.

Our volunteers are specially-trained to support witnesses throughout the process — before, during and after giving evidence.

Our initial conversation gives witnesses a chance to tell us about anything that could help us support them better. People who on paper look like similar witnesses can have very different needs. Pat and Ursula in The Archers trial for example, are both prosecution witnesses, but feel very differently about it. A case like this could mean arranging separate waiting areas, if waiting in the same room would increase anxiety.

Seeing the courtroom can help people to feel less anxious

While people may have seen trials on TV or film (or heard about them on the radio), many won’t have actually set foot in a courtroom before.

We can arrange for witnesses to visit the court before the trial so they know what to expect on the day. This is called a ‘pre-trial visit’ and it can make a big difference.

Our volunteers will talk witnesses through every stage — from where they’ll stand to who’s who in the courtroom.

We’re not just there when you’re in the witness box. As long as you need to wait, we’ll wait with you.

Soap operas can be action-packed. In real life, the trial process can often take longer than expected.

Our volunteers are there throughout to make sure witnesses have the support they need — whether that’s keeping witnesses updated on the progress of the case, answering questions about the court building or simply sitting with them and chatting to calm their nerves.

Our volunteers are there throughout to make sure witnesses have the support they need.

We offer extra protection and support to child witnesses

The Archers trial has underlined one of the many distressing realities of domestic violence — the main witnesses are often children.

Our volunteers are trained to support children who have to give evidence.

If we were notified that a child witness like Henry would be giving evidence, we’d begin supporting them before the trial even began.

Like other witnesses, we could arrange a court visit so he knows what to expect on the day. But we’d also offer an outreach visit at home or outside, where we could meet him away from the court environment, in a place that feels familiar and secure.

And we’d be there on the day. All child witnesses are entitled to extra protection and support and in a violent case like this, courts often allow witnesses to give evidence through a recorded video or a TV link. Our volunteers can join the child in the TV link room and work with other people who may accompany him to court like family members, carers or social workers.

We’re totally impartial. We support all witnesses — defence and prosecution — to navigate the court process

The Archers’ Rob Titchener is just one example of a witness who stirs up strong emotions.

Our impartiality is vital, so we are only notified of key details like witness name, whether they’re giving evidence for the prosecution or the defence, or the name of the offence.

In real life, our Witness Service teams wouldn’t know any of the case details or background — unlike The Archers listeners.

And we’re here to help all witnesses navigate the court process, whether they’re part of the prosecution or — like the Archers’ defence witnesses Ian and Neil — speaking in support of the defendant.

We’re currently working with the defence community to encourage more defence advocates to refer their witnesses to us for support.

Witnesses are often facing other issues. We can help them find the specialist support they need.

As well as providing emotional support and practical information about the court process, our volunteers can also help witnesses to access the support they need to solve problems that may affect their lives once they’ve finished giving evidence.

They can refer witnesses with other issues to their local Citizens Advice, or guide them to other specialist agencies. With witnesses involved in cases like the Helen Titchener trial, this could be organisations like Refuge, Women’s Aid or exploring what services might be available to support children affected by parental imprisonment.

The Witness Service offers free and independent support to witnesses in every criminal court across England and Wales. If you or someone you know needs support, get in touch by visiting our website or calling 0300 332 1000.