On 23 July 2019, the club had a moving and inspirational presentation from Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre (Cheshire and Merseyside). Project manager Kirsty explained the setup of the charity and the way the Centre works for and with survivors of sexual abuse. She shared some shocking statistics which highlighted just how necessary their services are: at least 20% of women in this country experience some form of sexual abuse in their life time, and around 3% will have experienced sexual abuse in the last year. And these statistics include only those cases where women have disclosed the abuse. Undoubtedly the real figures are considerably higher! The Centre itself has been going in our region since 1995 and performs an absolutely vital service for the community in Crewe and surroundings which is funded by the Council and the local crime commissioner amongst others. Last year alone, they had nearly 1,300 referrals and they deal not only with adult women but also with men and children.
The club then heard from a volunteer, herself a survivor of historic sexual abuse, who spoke bravely and very openly about her personal story and journey, after a history of childhood sexual abuse. She described very movingly how the abuse overshadowed not only her childhood but had lasting impact on her mental health and her life choices. This was made worse when she discovered that one of her siblings had also been abused, without her knowing about it. In recent years, with the help of the Centre, she managed to report the abuse to the police and live through a harrowing court case. She described how throughout the court case, she was supported by an independent sexual violence adviser (ISVA) which helped her cope with the stress and trauma of the proceedings. As a result, and with some therapy arranged by the Centre, she has developed the strength to tackle and overcome many of her own issues and she’s now in a position to help other women in similar situations as a volunteer for RASASC.
Club members were profoundly touched by the presentation and full of admiration for the volunteer after listening to her story. In addition to many questions, there was a lively discussion about the features of our criminal justice system in which the odds seem to be stacked squarely against survivors who are willing to come forward and accuse their abusers, often after many years of silence. In the vote of thanks to the speakers, the club officer recognised that this was probably one of the most important and inspirational presentations the club has had in many years and undoubtedly, the club will wish to follow up on some of the issues raised in the discussion in its own work.