The programme of the ENVR 2026 Spring Conference was built around a single practical question: how to turn the revised Victims’ Rights Directive into real access to justice? Each of the three days approached it from a different angle, and one thread ran through all of them: the next EU strategy on victims’ rights and the role ENVR networks should play in shaping it.

Key Technical Exchanges and Operational Solutions

The proceedings were structured around interactive sessions, dividing the technical work into targeted seminars and practical workshops, allowing member institutions to dissect operational challenges and share practical, field-tested methodologies:

• Multidisciplinary Triage & Individual Assessments: Experts analysed the Dutch model of multi-agency cooperation across the criminal justice chain. This integrated system ensures immediate needs assessment – preventing secondary victimization by sparing the victim from repeating their traumatic story multiple times.
• Child-Friendly Justice & Specialized Pathways: The Romanian Ministry of Justice presented its practical frameworks for child victims of sexual abuse, showcasing a dedicated project implemented in Bucharest. This approach combines adapted interview rooms with strict forensic protocols to preserve the evidentiary value of statements while minimizing trauma.
• Protecting Victims of International Crimes: A dedicated workshop mapped out the identification, protection, and support of victims of international crimes who became victims in the territory of third countries and accessed protection in the EU. The session focused on practical solutions for trauma-informed interviewing, victim referral pathways, and cooperation with national justice systems in the victims’ countries of origin.
• Societal Resilience & Media Handling: Evaluating the European Commission’s Keep Your Eyes Open campaign revealed that a unified visual identity can achieve high recall rates among young citizens. Complementing this, the Dutch service Namens de Familie demonstrated how proactive media advisors can protect victims’ privacy and prevent secondary victimization during high-profile judicial proceedings.

These discussions collectively aim to strengthen the EU’s legal and practical framework for victims’ rights, promote harmonization across Member States, and encourage innovative, victim-centred approaches.