A new support centre for the victims and witnesses of crime has been opened in Bradford.

The Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith QC, officially opened the Witness Care Unit on Manchester Road yesterday.

The multi-agency unit is staffed by members of the police, Crown Prosecution Service and Victim Support.

It is the first of its kind in West Yorkshire and part of the national No Witness, No Justice project.

Organisers hope to ensure that the service provided to victims and witnesses is properly tailored to the needs of each individual so that they are able to attend court. The move comes after it was revealed that in 2004 more than 20,000 trials collapsed due to a lack of a witness in court.

Lord Goldsmith said that the centre was good news for the people of Bradford.

"This unit will hand back power to the victims of crime.

"Criminals take that power away from people but the support and advice that these centres can give will provide witnesses with the confidence they need to stand up in court and be heard.

"The unit provides people involved in court cases with a single point of contact where they can get advice tailor-made to their needs.

"They can arrange for them to be able to give evidence behind a screen or via video if they do not want to eyeball a defendant.

"They can work with the Council to re-house witnesses who may be vulnerable where they live and sort out practical matters such as transport to and from court and arrange for interpreters."

Lord Goldsmith added that similar units already operating elsewhere in the country were already having a positive impact on getting witnesses into court.

"I have heard stories about cases of rape and other serious crimes where key witnesses who had been too frightened to go to court have been talked around.

"As well as getting witnesses into court we want to make it better and easier for them to get up and give evidence in court," he said.

The Chief Constable of West Yorkshire, Colin Cramphorn, said the unit would provide an invaluable service to the victims and witnesses of crime, who he described as the "most important people in the criminal justice process".

He said: "We have a duty to ensure that victims and witnesses of crimes in West Yorkshire receive a service which makes them feel confident in the criminal justice system."