Funding nightmare
Helpline suspended
A Hamilton-based service which supports victims of rape and sexual assault has made a desperate plea for funding.
Lanarkshire Rape Crisis Centre has been forced to suspend its much-used telephone helpline after struggling with a massive increase in demand for its services.
The organisation, which was established 14 years ago, supports women and girls who have experienced sexual violence such as rape, as well as abuse, bullying, exploitation and harassment.
It is staffed by a team of nine, with the helpline being supported by a group of specially-trained volunteers.
Helpline volunteers offer emotional and practical support to women in crisis.
They also signpost callers to other services offered by LRCC, such as face-to-face support sessions, and support and advocacy through the criminal justice process.
LRCC staff also work within the community to raise awareness and offer training.
In 2017 alone, 241 women were supported by centre staff and more than 2200 calls were made to the helpline.
For the period running from April 1 to August 31, 2017, the centre received 48 referrals.
Staff are already supporting 86 women referred since April this year – a 56 per cent increase.
Shockingly, the LRCC receives referrals from schools throughout North and South Lanarkshire for girls as young as 12.
Centre manager Anne Mcguire explained how a recent capacity issue meant they have been unable to recruit and train new volunteer support workers, and, coupled with an increase in LRCC’S services, this has led to the helpline becoming unmanageable.
She said: “The current situation has demonstrated to us that we need a better structure in place, especially to develop volunteer recruitment to ensure that we can deliver crisis support when required.
“Our volunteers are an integral part of our resources, and they simply do not just fill a gap. Our volunteers are highly valued, and it works both ways – while they provide a valued contribution to our service delivery, they also benefit from personal development and practical experience.
“The helpline normally operates with between 17 and 22 volunteers. At the moment, we have four as a result of current capacity.
It is also worth mentioning that some of our existing volunteers are students who are now returning to university, for example.
“With availability of trained volunteers decreasing over the past few months, we have finally had to take the decision to suspend the helpline.
“However, I should stress that the centre is still supporting more than 200 women referred to us prior to the helpline being suspended.”
Anne says the situation is all the more frustrating as the centre has a waiting list of 20 potential volunteers waiting to be trained.
She added: “It’s particularly exasperating as we have a waiting list of 20 potential volunteers – we just simply cannot afford to train them at the moment due to a serious lack of funding to recruit for a training post.
“Volunteers go through a strict vetting process, followed by an intensive 13-week training programme.
“This usually takes place every Saturday and has a mid-way assessment, an assessment at the end and a self assessment. Ideally, we just need funding to create a single post to be responsible for recruiting and training the volunteers.” A post made on the LRCC’S Facebook page last Wednesday (August 29) announced the suspension of the helpline, and provided the number for the rape crisis national helpline.
However, Anne says that a local number is needed to encourage female victims of sexual violence and abuse throughout Lanarkshire to seek support.
She said: “The national helpline is available of course, but we find that a lot of women we support don’t want to go through the national line to simply be passed on back to us anyway.
“A local helpline is desperately needed so that women can get the support they need quickly and efficiently.
“Throughout 2017, the helpline received more than 2200 calls from women in North and South Lanarkshire. This was a combination of crisis calls and from those requiring ongoing support.
“Last year, we had a total of 241 women ‘in service’ receiving ongoing practical and emotional support, as well as 81 oneoff contacts. Of the 241 supported, 87 were between the ages of 12 and 24, a large number of those coming as referrals from schools across Lanarkshire.
“From the 241 women, there were 247 incidents involved. This equated to 156 incidents of rape, 46 of historic sexual abuse and 45 of sexual bullying.
“The need for the Lanarkshire helpline to be reinstated is clear.”