Rape Crisis (England and Wales), NAVCA and the Women’s Resource Centre have launched a new briefing today, calling on local infrastructure organisations to champion Rape Crisis Centres by ensuring sexual violence is on local government agendas.

The briefing sets out practical advice for infrastructure organisations on how to support the sexual violence sector by ensuring sexual violence is included in local agendas, particularly Local Area Agreements (LAAs), which are currently being renegotiated and refreshed.

Now, more than ever, the Rape Crisis sector needs co-ordinated action from the voluntary sector. Rape Crisis Centres are facing a severe funding crisis. In 1984 there were 68 centres in England and Wales but now there are only 38 affiliated member groups of Rape Crisis (England and Wales). It is feared that as many as half of these remaining Centres could close in the near future unless local partnerships step in to fund specialist services.

The Government’s announcement of the new Public Service Agreements (PSAs) and National Indicators last month - that establish key priorities and how to measure them - have for the first time included sexual violence targets.

Infrastructure organisations can play a vital role in encouraging Local Strategic Partnerships (LSPs) to include the sexual violence National Indicators in LAAs.

Kevin Curley of NAVCA states: “The dire funding situation for Rape Crisis Centres arose from there being no local targets for sexual violence. The new PSAs and Indicators provide the best opportunity yet to get sexual violence priorities in to LAAs - alleviating the worsening crisis and supporting these vital services.”

Indeed, the demand for such services is extremely high – with one in five women experiencing rape and the vast majority not reporting the crime to police, it is even more urgent that women have access to specialist support services.

Vivienne Hayes of Women’s Resource Centre says: “Frontline women’s organisations are already stretched to breaking point. Infrastructure organisations like ours have a duty to support and raise this issue at a local level.”

Angie Conroy from Rape Crisis (England and Wales) states: “Rape Crisis welcomes the support of NAVCA and the WRC to ensure that the complex issues regarding services and funding is included within local delivery plans. The ‘postcode lottery’ of Rape Crisis support services across the UK means that there are huge areas of the country where sexual violence is not included or addressed on local agendas. So the support of other local infrastructure groups in raising these issues should help to address these geographical gaps and ensure that victims receive appropriate support.”

Notes:

The briefing is available from http://www.wrc.org.uk
Local partnerships have until June 2008 to renegotiate their Local Area Agreements for 2008-2011 and can choose up to 35 National Indicators (there are also 17 obligatory indicators on education and early years) to meet the outcomes of the Public Service Agreements.
Rape Crisis (England and Wales), WRC and NAVCA highlight National Indicator 26 (“Specialist support to victims of a serious sexual offence”) under PSA23 (“Making communities safer”) as the most urgent target to be implemented in LAAs.
There are 198 National Indicators that local partnerships can choose from are detailed in The New Performance Framework for Local Authorities and Local Authority Partnerships: Single Set of National
Indicators (October 2007) http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/localgovernment/pdf/505713

http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/pbr_csr/press/pbr_csr07_press03.cfm

The Cross-Government Action Plan on Sexual Violence and Abuse (April 2007) makes a strong case for including sexual violence targets in Local Area Agreements. http://www.crimereduction.homeoffice.gov.uk/sexualoffences/sexual03.htm

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