Just to continue on the theme of No. 10 petitions that came up on the other thread, the Government has now published an official response to this one.
As you can see, the original petition called for:
“the Prime Minister to take urgent action to end the postcode lottery in violence against women support services, such as Rape Crisis Centres, to stem the tide of closures and ensure all women have access to these vital services. Every year, 3 million women in the UK are victims of gender-based violence. Specialised services are essential to support these women, yet provision is patchy and in some places there are no services at all. Map of Gaps, an End Violence Against Women and Equality and Human Rights Commission report, highlights that: – A third of local authorities in the UK have no specialised support services – Most women in the UK have no access to a Rape Crisis Centre – Less than one in ten local authorities have specialist services for ethnic minority women We call on the government to take a more strategic approach to ending all forms of violence against women, including a commitment to long-term funding of specialised violence against women services.”
And the response? More blah about the amount the Government has invested in Sexual Assault Referral Centres aka SARCs, which we can all acknowledge is a good thing, but which is also most definitely not the same as investing in Rape Crisis centres. SARCs only help women in the immediate aftermath of a rape or sexual assault, whereas Rape Crisis provides “a service to women with historic experiences of sexual violence, many of them victims of childhood sexual abuse. Sixty one per cent of Rape Crisis clients have been raped or sexually assaulted three or more years prior to accessing their services.”
And while we’re on the subject of the postcode lottery in violence against women support services, I would just point out yet again that there is still no SARC in the East of England. So if you’re unfortunate enough to be the victim of a sexual assault in Norfolk, Suffolk etc, then what?
Luckily we’ve still got some Rape Crisis Centres here, but for how much longer? Cambridge Rape Crisis for instance, “can currently only afford to open two hours a week.”
It’s absolutely fucking shameful.
But back to the response. The Government also says that it acknowledges:
“that rape crisis centres and other support services continue to face significant challenges, and we are working closely with them to identify what more can be done to assist in increasing their capacity and stability. A stakeholder working group (which includes members of Rape Crisis) has been set up to look specifically at this issue, and will report to Ministers shortly. We have already implemented some of their earlier recommendations.
In addition, the Minister for Women, Harriet Harman, announced in March 2008 a special fund of £1 million to assist rape crisis centres at risk of closure. This money has now been distributed. The Government has also ensured that grant awards to rape crisis centres for 2007/8 were renewed in 2008/9.”
Let’s hope the grant awards are bigger than the £683 Cambs RC received after applying for a grant of £11,000!
“In relation to taking a more strategic approach to ending violence against women, the Government has already developed a number of linked national action plans on a variety of issues. These include rape and other forms of sexual violence, domestic violence, prostitution and human trafficking. Each of these areas of work identifies a number of joined-up work streams that are being pursued across Government departments.
The Government is committed to ensuring that women and girls are not subject to any form of violence, and it is currently taking a fresh look at our work in this area specifically through the prism of gender. We are developing a cross-government consultation on violence against women. Further information on this will be made available shortly.”
Action plans, work streams and consultations are welcome, and hopefully something good will eventually come out of them, but all this takes time. In the meantime, while all this bureaucratic yackety yackety yack is going on, Rape Crisis Centres up and down the country are once again in serious danger of going under. They don’t have time to wait for the outcome of yet more policy meetings, yet more working groups, and yet more ministerial bumbling around, they need funding, and they need that funding now.
And not just short-term emergency funding, but funding that’s long-term and that enables them not only to cope with their current workloads, but which enables them to plan ahead, secure in the knowledge that they’ll be there for years to come to help future victims of these heinous crimes.
So come on Harriet et al, time to put your money where your mouth is. Don’t just talk about your commitment to violence against women services, do something about it: before even more Rape Crisis centres are forced to close, and before even more Rape Crisis workers are forced to remortgage their homes to pay for your neglect.
Too Much To Say For Myself 
Probably the majority of women who contact Rape Crisis centres in my experience have not just been raped. Some will only be able to even name what happened to them as rape until weeks, months, or even years later. Others may be able to recognise the event, but not feel the full impact until much later. The idea that someone gets raped and then gets over it, and only need support in the immediate aftermath is flawed. And the ‘medical’ surroundings of most SARCs means a lot of those who have been raped will not want to use them anyway. There is a place, and a need for both services.
And not just short-term emergency funding, but funding that’s long-term and that enables them not only to cope with their current workloads, but which enables them to plan ahead, secure in the knowledge that they’ll be there for years to come to help future victims of these heinous crimes.
That is totally the problem in a nutshell Cath. Long-term funding. Instead, a token handout here and there, which does nothing for the RC network for the future. In my area there is a part-time phone line, but it is not that widely known (I could not find the number without some serious hunting).
In relation to taking a more strategic approach to ending violence against women, the Government has already developed a number of linked national action plans on a variety of issues. These include rape and other forms of sexual violence, domestic violence, prostitution and human trafficking. Each of these areas of work identifies a number of joined-up work streams that are being pursued across Government departments.
My radfem decoder on this says they are trying to centralise all these “women problems” into one big female-ghetto package, thus saving the bucks. It will look like they’ve done something, but in reality, it probably means that the few centres that are about, will have to “multi-task” the VAW situation. Basically the existing centres will get a continuation of funding, but their workload will increase.
The idea that SARCs can replace RCs as an ongoing method of support is ludicrous. As Polly says, sometimes, for whatever reason, it takes time for the rape victim to seek out help and support.
Why is it when men and boys get raped, it is deemed the most horrible and life changing event? And when women and girls get raped, they are expected to “just get over it, no biggie”? It’s bullshit double standards.
The idea that SARCs can replace RCs as an ongoing method of support is ludicrous. As Polly says, sometimes, for whatever reason, it takes time for the rape victim to seek out help and support.
Absolutely. I worked with an eighty year old woman who had experienced CSA, so it took her roughly seventy years. Some things had to “be got in order” you see before it was too late.
The government’s response was typical because it was ‘all waffle and no action.’ Of course it is all about economics – money can be spent on bailing out banks and buying the latest warfare but when it comes to actually spending real money on helping women who have suffered routine and mundane male violence in all its forms – then it becomes a ‘no no.’
Government commitment to ‘challenging male violence against women’ – what a laugh – just words empty words. SARC centres cannot replace Rape Crisis Centres but once again that ugly word ‘economics’ arises and we must not forget SARCS are owned and administered by government institutions so male-dominant politics enters into the equation.
Of course women are expected to ‘get over it’ after having been subjected to male sexual violence – six short counselling sessions does the trick nicely! What? Not all women know they have been raped by that ‘nice respectable man?’ Well that is because the woman must be lying after all we all know what is and is not rape. This is the mindset of many individuals who refuse to even begin to understand the complexities of how male sexual violence against women and children operates and why it is normalised or else it is women’s and girls’ faults for leading on poor innocent men!
How many more government consultations do we need? Five, ten, twenty or more because consultations are an excellent way of sweeping the issue under the carpet and government will claim after each consultation, well we need more research on this subject before making a decision.
There are millions of women who’ve been raped and sexually assaulted who’ve never had any counselling. Because we’re talking about HUGE numbers. Even the British Crime Survey puts the figure at 1 in 20 women who’ve been raped as an adult. This is probably a huge underestimate because of the survey methods. (face to face interviewing at random) Women’s services usually put the figure at or 1 in 4 – a much more realistic estimate I’d say.
http://www.truthaboutrape.co.uk/index2.html
The NSPCC gives the figures for childhood sexual abuse of females in the UK as 21% of all female children.
Click to access prevalenceTable1_wdf49715.pdf
A lot of these women will never tell anyone what has happened to them. Because the myth in society is that these are rare events. They’re not.
(Comment split, because the two links meant it got eaten by the spamulator).
Am I finding it refreshing reading these comments, Hell YES!!!
Please, if anyone considers it appropriate, will you sign my No. 10 Petition, which is specifically highlighting the support which convicted sex offenders of children get, in comparison to the paltry tokenistic (due to lack of funding) provision provided to adults who were sexually abused as children.
Also, to say if you are not already, sing up to the survivors trust on;line. They forward on upcoming events, such as the March going on in London in Sept.
Gratitude to have found this website & these comments 🙂