Minutes:
The Board received a report of the Strategic Director,
Communities which presentation which informed the Members of the advice,
support and counselling services offered through RASASC for the benefit of men,
women and young people affected by any form of sexual violence.
The Board was advised that The Safe Place Project had successfully set
up a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) for Cheshire, Halton and Warrington.
SARC’s were a national initiative and care for people who had suffered rape
or serious sexual assault. The crisis service went live on 1 April 2011
and was located at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester and was provided by Central
Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
The Board was also advised that the aftercare service was provided by
the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre. The Pan-Cheshire aftercare service
was also funded 50% by the local authorities and went live on 1 October 2010
covering Cheshire, Halton and Warrington.
It was reported that the SARC was a
dedicated facility staffed by specialist medical personnel and experienced
support staff who provided crisis and aftercare services to anyone who had been
raped or experienced serious sexual abuse now or in the past.
The SARC provided a comprehensive and
co-ordinated forensic and counselling service to men, women and children.
The service included the
following:-
·
Immediate
crisis support;
·
A
forensic medical examination;
·
Emergency
contraception and pregnancy testing;
·
Information
relating to infection and sexually transmitted diseases;
·
Support
through the criminal Justice system;
·
One to
one counselling; and
·
A 24
hour advice and information line.
RASASC was the aftercare service offered to those aged 13 plus in Halton
who had experienced sexual violence. RASASC also accepted self-referrals and
referrals from other agencies.
It was also reported that during the period 1st April 2012 –
28th September 2012 Halton RASASC had received 95 new referrals,
with 15 of those under the age of 17.
All SARC clients had been contacted within 24 hours of referral and all
other clients had been contacted within 72 hours of the referral. Where phone contact could not be made, a
letter had been sent to the client therefore the longest wait time for contact
had been between 3-5 days.
In addition, it was reported that 74 initial meetings had been
arranged. Fourteen of these meetings had
been cancelled by clients and rebooked with a DNA figure of 15. It was also
reported that ISVA hours for this quarter had 390; counselling hours were 353.
The Board also received a presentation from Helen Wardman
and Julie Evans, Rape and Sexual
Assault Support Centre (RASASC) on the services they provide. A summary of the services that were provided
was circulated at the meeting.
The Board noted that the staff information
line was only open Monday – Friday 9.00 am – 4.30 pm. The Board also noted that
the information given ensured that prosecution cases were not compromised. It was also reported that there was a 24 hour
line available for people who had been recently raped.
The Board noted that the service was widely
advertised in numerous ways such as in GP surgeries, yellow pages and leaflet
drops. The Board requested that the information leaflet be distributed to all
Members of the Board for information.
RESOLVED: That
(1)
The
report and comments raised be noted;
(2)
The
presentation be received; and
(3)
Ms
Helen Wardman and Julie Evans be thanked for their informative presentation.
Supporting documents: