Eight-year-old Sarah was murdered in July 2000

Other members of the group included Denise Fergus, mother of Liverpool toddler James Bulger, Maureen Harvey, mother of road rage victim Lee Harvey and Frances Hogg, whose daughter Andrea Dykes was killed in the Admiral Duncan bombing in Soho.

Mrs Payne,of Hersham, Surrey, said they wanted to raise awareness for victims.

"You come to the end of a court case and you come to a dead end.

"It is a time when families do need to be together but I think there almost needs to be a guardian angel looking over your shoulder too.

"We need a minister fighting for victims so victims do not have to fight for themselves," she said.

'Woefully behind'

A Home Office spokesperson said the government would consider the letter and was committed to reducing crime and providing victim support.

"We will never eradicate crime altogether but the government will continue to do all it can to stand up for victims and square up to criminals - through investment in and reform of the criminal justice system."

The visit was timed to coincide with European Victims Week and was organised in conjunction with the Victims of Crime Trust.

Norman Brennan, of the Trust, said more funding was needed to provide vital counselling and support to victims.

He said: "We are woefully behind other countries in looking after victims of crime.

"We haven't got a minister to champion the causes of victims in Parliament.

"That is a crime in itself."

Silent suffering

Maureen Harvey, of King's Norton, Birmingham, whose son Lee, 25, was stabbed to death by his lover Tracie Andrews said such a minister should already be in place.

"You have just gone through the worst thing that can happen to anybody, you have lost the dearest person to you - you can't get over that in six months.

"We shouldn't have to be here today but we have become professional beggars."

Research carried out by Victim Support has revealed that 96% of people who have suffered a crime are not helped by the state.

They found that many agencies, such as the NHS or housing departments, were "still largely unaware of the special needs of victims of crime".

Chief executive of Victim Support, Dame Helen Reeves, said: "We believe an entirely new way of thinking about crime is needed - one that recognises the needs of victims of crime as the responsibility of the whole community, rather than leaving people to suffer in silence while we focus our attention on offenders."