The Council of Europe awarded the “Crystal Scales of Justice” Prize 2023 to “Hope For Children” CRC Policy Center and the Cyprus Judicial School, for the innovative tool “Kids in Court Game”.

In a press release, “Hope for Children” says that participation in this competition was a joint effort between Hope For Children and the Cyprus Judicial School. The tool “Kids in Court Game” (KiCGame) prepares children – vulnerable witnesses for their participation in judicial proceedings. It was developed in collaboration between Hope For Children and Sheffield Hallam University in the UK, led by lead researcher by Dr. Marilena Kyriakidou, Senior Lecturer at the university, and coordinated on behalf of HFC by Senior Clinical Psychologist, Ioanna Drousiotou.

The proposal received support from Cyprus’ Ministry of Justice and Public Order and the Commissioner for the Protection of the Rights of the Child. The tool is also endorsed by other public authorities involved in handling cases of violence against children, such as the Social Welfare Services and Mental Health Services.

The award ceremony took place in Paris in a special event organized by the French Ministry of Justice.

“The award is considered a great honour for Cyprus, as organisations from many European countries participate in the competition” Hope for Children notes. Specifically, for this year’s edition, a total of 48 proposals from 17 countries were submitted, with a strong emphasis on access to justice, victim protection, and digitization of the justice system.

Representatives of the award-winning proposals will be invited to present them at the plenary session of the CEPEJ (European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice) in early December 2023.

As the winning country of this year’s competition, Cyprus will host the final ceremony for the 13th edition of the award in October 2025.