Rape support charity pauses counselling over lack of funds

The support centre said it has more than 430 people waiting for its help and it cannot keep pace with current demand

A support service for survivors of rape and sexual assault has stopped taking on people for counselling due to a lack of funding.

The West Mercia Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre said it has more than 430 people currently waiting for help.

The service gets some support from the Ministry of Justice and the local police and crime commissioner.

But chief executive Jocelyn Anderson said they need £800,000 to clear their waiting list and meet current demand.

She said the funding they get is not enough to meet the pace of demand for their help and they have had no response to requests for long-term help from councils or health groups.

With 60 new referrals each month at the moment, the group said it has paused its counselling waiting list from 30 June.

Mrs Anderson said it would take them a "significant amount of time" to work through their current list.

She added the move had been "absolutely devastating" for staff and clients but there was no choice.

"We have cut services to the bone already, we have limited the amount of support sessions that our clients can have at the moment," she said.

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The charity was set up in 1986 in Worcestershire and expanded to Herefordshire in 2011.

Initially it supported female victims and survivors of sexual violence but expanded to men and boys in recent years.

Mrs Anderson said she hoped people who do refer survivors to them can either fund the person to have counselling or find alternative arrangements.