Victim Support Scotland was honoured to receive the award for Campaign of the Year at the Scottish Charity Awards 2026.

The campaign we were nominated for made historic changes to parole rules, where a convicted murderer has not revealed the location of their victim's remains. The parole board now 'must' consider this when deciding whether or not to grant parole. Previously, they 'may' have considered this, but were not compelled to.

This is a small change of only one word, but it has enormous consequences for people who have lost a loved one to murder, whose body has not been found.

The campaign was part of a wider journey to change the Scottish criminal justice system for the better, through the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform Act, which was voted through last year. This brought in several key changes, including the abolition of the not proven verdict and the establishment of a Victims and Witnesses Commissioner for Scotland.

This award belongs to the families and individuals who tirelessly campaigned, over many long years, to see these crucial changes realised. It belongs to the families of Suzanne Pilley and Arlene Fraser, as well as Lynn Burns, Kevin Woodburn, and Stewart Handling, who have all passionately campaigned for change.

We are so grateful to have stood behind them and helped them to make a difference, and our deepest thanks goes to them, and the many others, who made this possible - including our partner organisations and everyone else who is working to create positive change in the criminal justice sector.

Debbie Adams, Interim CEO, Victim Support Scotland said: 

“We are delighted to be recognised for the monumental changes that have been enacted due to our campaigning alongside people affected by crime.

These much-needed changes have only been possible thanks to tireless campaigning by families, who have worked not only to improve the system for themselves, but for everyone else who has been affected by these devastating types of crime.

We thank also Scotland's ministers and MSPs for being open, receptive, and supportive of the positive impact this change could bring. Our heartfelt thanks goes to everyone who made this campaign possible."