Article 20 – General support services

1 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that victims have access to

services facilitating their recovery from violence. These measures should include, when necessary,

services such as legal and psychological counselling, financial assistance, housing, education,

training and assistance in finding employment.

2 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that victims have access to

health care and social services and that services are adequately resourced and professionals are

trained to assist victims and refer them to the appropriate services.

Article 21 – Assistance in individual/collective complaints

Parties shall ensure that victims have information on and access to applicable regional and

international individual/collective complaints mechanisms. Parties shall promote the provision of

sensitive and knowledgeable assistance to victims in presenting any such complaints.

Article 22 – Specialist support services

1 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to provide or arrange for, in an

adequate geographical distribution, immediate, short- and long-term specialist support services to

any victim subjected to any of the acts of violence covered by the scope of this Convention.

2 Parties shall provide or arrange for specialist women’s support services to all women victims of

violence and their children.

Article 23 – Shelters

Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to provide for the setting-up of

appropriate, easily accessible shelters in sufficient numbers to provide safe accommodation for and

to reach out pro-actively to victims, especially women and their children.

Article 24 – Telephone helplines

Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to set up state-wide round-the-clock

(24/7) telephone helplines free of charge to provide advice to callers, confidentially or with due

regard for their anonymity, in relation to all forms of violence covered by the scope of this

Convention.

Article 25 – Support for victims of sexual violence

Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to provide for the setting up of

appropriate, easily accessible rape crisis or sexual violence referral centres for victims in sufficient

numbers to provide for medical and forensic examination, trauma support and counselling for

victims.

Article 26 – Protection and support for child witnesses

1 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that in the provision of

protection and support services to victims, due account is taken of the rights and needs of child

witnesses of all forms of violence covered by the scope of this Convention.

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