Rape Crisis centres are closing at an alarming rate because of a lack of funding. In 1984 there were 68 Rape Crisis centres in England and Wales – today there are just 38 centres affiliated to Rape Crisis (England and Wales). Nine Rape Crisis centres have closed since 2003 and many more face an uncertain future.

While Rape Crisis centres have always been marginalised and suffered from underinvestment, the sector, en masse, is now at crisis point.

Research by WRC and Rape Crisis (England and Wales) reveals that Rape Crisis centres are spectacularly under-funded. In-depth interviews with 35 Rape Crisis centres explore their funding and sustainability, service users, staffing and political and public awareness of the work of Rape Crisis centres.

Key findings from this research include:

• The combined annual income for Rape Crisis centres in 2006-07 was just over £3.5m. The government spent more than twice this amount on advertising and public relations each week in 2004-05.
• The average annual income for Rape Crisis centres was £81,598, only marginally more than the cost, to the state, of one rape.
• 69% of centres identified that they were unsustainable in the future.
• 79% of grants they received were for one year or less.
• Only 21% of services provided by Rape Crisis are fully funded.
• The total number of average days spent on waiting lists equals 1,929 days – or 5.3 years.
• Rape Crisis is a crucial support service for women with historic experiences of sexual violence (such as childhood sexual abuse), with over three-quarters of service users having experiences of sexual violence that occurred in the past.

Download the Crisis in Rape Crisis full report

Download the Crisis in Rape Crisis executive summary

Take action to support Rape Crisis centres .