# **Annual Report 2022/23** **Herts Area Rape Crisis and Sexual Abuse Centre** ## **CONTENTS** **THE GROUP .............................................................................................................................................................. 3 AIMS ........................................................................................................................................................................ 3 OBJECTIVES .............................................................................................................................................................. 3 OUR PHILOSPHY ....................................................................................................................................................... 3 OUR SERVICES .......................................................................................................................................................... 4 ENGLAND AND WALES – RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT STATISTICS: SOURCES ........................................................... 5 HELPLINE ACTIVITY ................................................................................................................................................... 7 WAITING LIST ........................................................................................................................................................... 8 COUNSELLING .......................................................................................................................................................... 9 SUGGESTIONS AND FEEDBACK ................................................................................................................................ 12 ACCESS TO POLICIES AND PROCEDURES .................................................................................................................. 12 COMPLAINTS ........................................................................................................................................................... 12 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................................................... 12 FUNDING ................................................................................................................................................................. 13 INCOME 2022/23 .................................................................................................................................................... 13 EXPENDITURE 2022/23 AND BUDGET 2023/24 ........................................................................................................ 14 BUDGET FOR 2023/24 ............................................................................................................................................. 15 AUDITED ACCOUNTS – PAGE 1 ................................................................................................................................ 16 AUDITED ACCOUNTS – PAGE 2 ................................................................................................................................ 17** HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022– 31[st] March 2023 Page **2** of **18** ## **THE GROUP** Herts Area Rape Crisis and Sexual Abuse Centre (HARCSAC) has been operating since 1986 and is located in Hatfield. We are a registered charity (No.1194253). HARCSAC is run and delivered by a group of fifteen women volunteers who have undergone specialist training in rape and sexual abuse counselling, with one paid part-time Office Manager and one paid part-time Administrator. ## **AIMS** To offer free support to any woman aged over 18 living in Hertfordshire who has experienced rape, sexual assault, or any form of sexual abuse at any time in her life. ## **OBJECTIVES** - To listen to, and believe, the women who contact us. - To support and assist them in reviewing their options by providing free confidential counselling or support through the appropriate medium. - To provide them and their family and friends with information. - To promote education and research into sexual violence. - To give ongoing training to our women counsellors. - To set up and maintain a co-ordinated group of contacts to work in partnership with other organisations. - To receive training on related issues for our ongoing professional development. - To provide training for any local group wishing to increase their awareness of the needs of rape/sexual abuse survivors. - To obtain funding for all of the above and to enable us to continue to employ staff. ## **OUR PHILOSPHY** HARCSAC is committed to a trauma informed client led approach to service delivery and understands that the women who use our services are best placed to identify their own recovery needs. We offer non-judgemental, non-directive information, counselling, and support in order to assist each woman’s individual recovery process. All women are supported in their choices with regard to their human rights including sexual health, reproductive rights and the right to safe abortion. We will not contact a woman at the request of a third party as we feel strongly that she needs to come to the decision to make the initial contact herself. For any woman to undergo counselling and to talk about her experiences, often for the first time, is a very big step and one that takes a great deal of courage. In our experience, it is not helpful to a woman if she is pressurised or pushed into counselling by anyone, however well-meaning they may be. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022– 31[st] March 2023 Page **3** of **18** ## **OUR SERVICES** - Calls to our helpline are answered by a volunteer counsellor on Thursday evenings between 7.30pm - 9.30pm. At all other times callers can leave a message and a volunteer counsellor will return the call as soon as possible. This service operates 365 days per year. - Free and confidential face to face counselling is available by appointment at our Centre in Hatfield. - Free and confidential face to face counselling can also be delivered via a secure online platform. - We can offer information on rape and sexual abuse related issues to survivors and to their families and friends, including details of other agencies offering complementary services. - Presentations to local groups and organisations wishing to increase their awareness of the needs of rape/sexual abuse survivors. - Although we cannot provide counselling via email or text, we use these to share information about our service and sometimes signpost to other services. ## _**Here at HARCSAC we are very proud that:**_ - We are rated very highly by the women that access our services. - Our services are free at the point of delivery. - We offer a client focused approach empowering women to address their own individual needs. - We provide women-only services in a safe, non-threatening women-only space. It is only possible to deliver our services in the flexible way that we do because of the commitment and dedication of our volunteer counsellors and staff. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **4** of **18** ## **ENGLAND AND WALES – RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT STATISTICS: sources** We continued to work in line with the Rape Crisis National Service Standards, which represent recognised standards of best practice and quality across the Rape Crisis network and have been mapped against other quality assurance frameworks. ## **Statistics about sexual violence and abuse** With so many myths surrounding rape, sexual assault and other forms of sexual violence and abuse, it can sometimes be hard to know what to believe. Here are some key statistics from trusted sources showing the scale of the problem in England and Wales. How many women are rapes or sexually assaulted every year? **798,000.** That’s 1 in 30 women. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2023)** - 1 in 4 women have been raped or sexually assaulted as an adult. 1 in 18 men have been raped or sexually assaulted as an adult. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2023).** - 27% of all adult women aged 16 to 74 in England and Wales have experienced sexual assault at least once since the age of 16. - 5.7% of all men aged 16 to 74 in England and Wales have experienced sexual assault at least once since the age of 16. **These statistics are based on data for the year ending March 2022 from the Crime Survey for England and Wales. The Crime Survey was only able to collect six months’ data face-to-face for the year ending March 2022.** - 67,169 rapes were recorded by Police in 2022. **As this ONS statistical bulletin states, ‘Of all sexual offences recorded by the police in the year ending December 2022, 35% (67,169) were rape offences (a subcategory of sexual offences). This was a 17% increase from 57,586 in the year ending March 2020. Other sexual offences increased by 21% to 122,562 offences compared with the year ending March 2020 (101,494). All figures exclude Devon and Cornwall Police’** . - By the end of the year, charges had been brought in just 1,276 (19%) of these cases. - After being reported to the Police, adult rape cases take an average of more than 2 years to complete in court. **Source: UK Government.** - Meanwhile, there's currently a record number of sexual offence cases that are waiting to go to court: 8,741 This includes a record number of adult rape cases: 2,210. **Source: Ministry of Justice.** - 1 in 2 rapes against women are carried out by their partner or ex-partner. 5 in 6 rapes against women are carried out by someone they know. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2021)** - 98% of adults prosecuted for sexual offences are men. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2018)** - It is estimated that 5 in 6 women who are raped don’t report – and the same is true for 4 in 5 men. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2021)** - 6.5 million women in England and Wales have been raped or sexually assaulted since the age of 16. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2023)** HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **5** of **18** - 1 in 2 adult survivors of rape have experienced it more than once. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2021)** - 1 in 3 adult survivors of rape experience it in their own home. **Source: Office for National Statistics (2021)** **You can find more statistics about rape and other forms of sexual violence and abuse at:** - **End Violence Against Women:** endviolenceagainstwomen.org.uk - **Crown Prosecution Service:** cps.gov.uk - **Office for National Statistics:** ons.gov.uk ## **THE PAST 12 MONTHS** - Thanks to extended funding from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) our Centre can employ 1 parttime Office Manager/Fundraiser working **14** hours per week and 1 part-time Service Support Co-ordinator working **20** hours per week. - Our helpline dealt with **899** contacts either by telephone or email. - A total of **484** hours of face-to-face counselling were carried out at the centre and/or via video. - We increased our delivery of services by **18%** resulting in a reduction in the waiting time to access the service. - Recommenced our face-to-face training course for new volunteers in February 2023. - In addition to working with clients our volunteers donated **295** working days, throughout the reporting period, to ensure the smooth running of the organisation - covering general admin, training, special projects, compliance and providing education. - We have re-arranged our regular external clinical supervision into a hybrid arrangement to enable our highly qualified and experienced supervisor to facilitate individual and group development and ensure best practice. - We continue to play an active role within the Rape Crisis community by maintaining full membership of Rape Crisis England and Wales (RCEW) and attending bi-monthly online regional meetings and managers/director’s liaison meetings. Several volunteers attended online seminars and workshops at the RCEW Annual conference. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **6** of **18** ## **HELPLINE ACTIVITY** During the period of this report, HARCSAC received **899** calls/emails to the helpline. Calls and emails to the helpline increased by just over **48%** from **606** during 2021/22. It is felt that this dramatic increase is in large part due to additional stresses placed on survivors during the lockdown period. ## **HELPLINE ACTIVITY** **----- Start of picture text -----**
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April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb March
19/20 12 17 18 20 21 28 32 22 24 18 23 15
20/21 18 8 19 31 39 33 55 40 36 32 38 40
21/22 53 55 48 53 70 32 45 60 45 52 57 36
22/23 63 50 71 93 106 65 76 93 63 71 75 73
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**95%** of messages left on the helpline are returned on the same day. We support partners, friends and family of survivors who are seeking information. We do not work with male survivors but treat callers sympathetically and can signpost them to male support organisations. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **7** of **18** ## **WAITING LIST** In 2021-2022 we had an average of **84** women on the waiting list. However, in 2022-23 this has increased to an average of **88** . This increase is due to the exponential increase in demand for our services. ## **WAITING LIST** **----- Start of picture text -----**
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April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb March
19/20 54 60 65 68 71 74 77 80 88 92 94 96
20/21 97 93 93 91 95 85 86 88 90 85 92 94
21/22 99 95 97 98 72 69 72 76 79 82 87 84
22/23 87 86 83 82 85 87 93 92 95 93 85 88
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HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **8** of **18** ## **COUNSELLING** Prior to accepting a woman onto our waiting list, we carry out an initial risk assessment so that she/we can jointly determine whether the service we offer is likely to be appropriate for her. We offer trauma informed client-led counselling with regular reviews, to ensure that the service remains relevant and appropriate to the client’s needs. Many of the women who contact us are speaking of their experiences for the first time. ## **COUNSELLING HOURS DELIVERED** **----- Start of picture text -----**
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April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb March
19/20 26 36 23 42 36 28 36 26 28 32 30 12
20/21 8 10 24 44 46 46 30 30 28 28 28 28
21/22 16 24 46 32 30 50 34 58 40 42 34 42
22/23 34 44 38 40 40 28 46 46 28 42 48 50
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## **ABOUT THE COUNSELLING SESSIONS** Clients meet with two specialist trained female volunteer counsellors on a fortnightly basis at a regular time. In our experience this is the optimum timescale to allow the client to process the session. Each session lasts up to one hour. ## **HOW LONG WE PROVIDE THE SERVICE FOR** We will aim to work with the client initially for up to **20** sessions. During this time, we will regularly review how they are getting on to ensure that our service remains both relevant and appropriate. We will always try to be flexible in extending the service if the woman’s needs are more complex. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **9** of **18** CLIENT FEEDBACK The counselling has helped me to undersland and overcome whal happened to me and how it has affected me (please tick one answer).. 7 responses Stronuly agree • Agiee • DiSÉoree Strongly dlsagree Canl say Idonl kt I didnYn8gd hglpv•ith this 42.9% 42.9% The counselling has helpèd me to feel less alone andlor isolated (please ti¢k one answer).. 7 responses strongly agree Agree • Disayrée Strongly drsagrg Can't say Idon'l know I didnl nged help Wilh this 28.8% 57.1% The counselling has helped me to feel heard and believed (please tick one answer).. 7 re9ponses SITongly agree • Aoree • Strongly disagrée Disagree Can't say I don't know I d￿nI need helpwlth this 14.3% 85.7% HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1st April 2022_ 31st March 2023 PagÈ 10 of 18 ## **Other comments** ## **Please explain other ways in which counselling made a difference to you.** - To recognise triggers and deal with them the best I can. - To have a safe space in which to talk was invaluable. - To be heard, to share things I couldn’t tell anyone else, without being judged, was such a help and relief. I was in a very low place, not functioning well and having the opportunity to talk has brought me to a better place. One with more clarity and hope. - The counselling enabled me to understand myself and it empowered me to make changes which have enriched the quality of my life. - Being heard by my counsellors’ validated thoughts and feelings which I had, in the past, discarded. It hasn’t merely inspired growth; it has also allowed to plan and envisage a positive future. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **11** of **18** ## **SUGGESTIONS AND FEEDBACK** We are always looking for ways to improve and develop our service. When a client finishes hour counselling, we ask her to complete a feedback form which is used to inform our service for the future. This can be done anonymously if preferred. Suggestions and feedback are also welcomed and encouraged during the counselling relationship. ## **ACCESS TO POLICIES AND PROCEDURES** It is our policy to provide open, honest and transparent services. Full access to our Policies, Procedures are available upon request and our Annual Reports including audited accounts are available on our website at www.hertsrapecrisis.org.uk. ## **COMPLAINTS** We hope that our clients will not have reason to do so but should they wish to make a complaint about any aspect of our service, they may initially address this with the person concerned. If, however, this is not a suitable course of action for them, they should make a complaint in writing to: **The Chair of Trustees, PO Box 256, Hatfield, Herts AL10 ONE** or by e-mail to admin@hertsrapecrisis.org.uk. A copy of our complaints procedure and form are also available upon request. ## **ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS** We would like to thank the following people who have helped HARCSAC in the past year: - **Peter Holman** who kindly does the final parts of the bookkeeping every year. We recognise the time and effort that this takes. - **Brenda Alcock** who very kindly audits our accounts. We are very grateful for Brenda’s continued help and support. - **James Tiplady,** Centre Manager, and his team for opening our premises at unsociable hours. - Volunteer Counsellors, Trustees, Staff and Members of HARCSAC for their continued support. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **12** of **18** ## **FUNDING** Our finances for 2022/23 in terms of grant were focused on money from the Ministry of Justice with £63,272. The only other grant giving body was POhWER, who work on behalf of Hertfordshire Count Council, they gave us £2,500. However, we did have some significant donations totalling £16,489, which doubled the amount we had compared to the previous year. D Wilkins continues to support us monthly; we had a significant sum from Bone and Sutton; Patsy Daeche ran a charity raffle for HARCSAC; Waitrose made us their monthly charity; the Soroptimists and Wheathampsted Warriors also gave us over £200 each, plus we had regular funds from the Broxbourne Lottery organisation HARCSAC is indebted to all the organisations and individuals that provide us with funds, without these resources we could not continue supporting women. ## **Details of our income for 2022/2023 are in the following table.** ## **INCOME 2022/23** |**INCOME 2022/23**||| |---|---|---| |**Grants**|Ministryof Justice|£63,272.00| ||POhWER|£2500.00| |**Sub total**||**£65,772.00**| |**Donations**|D Wilkins|£520.00| ||Wheathampstead Warriors|£235.00| ||PatsyDaeche - Raffle for HARCSAC|£600.00| ||Broxbourne Lottery|£154.00| ||Bone ad Sutton|£13,287.00| ||Soroptimists|£225.00| ||Waitrose|£500.00| ||Local AuthorityBushey+ OxheyGrant|£500.00| ||Other donations|£470.00| |**Sub total**||**£16,490.00**| |**Bank interest**||£65.00| |**GRAND TOTAL**||**£85,327.00**| HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **13** of **18** ## **EXPENDITURE 2022/23 AND BUDGET 2023/24** The figures in the table below have some different expenditure side headings for 2023/24 compared to 2022/23. This has been undertaken due the requirement of a major funder. ## **EXPENDITURE AND BUDGET** |**EXPENDITURE TYPE**|**BUDGET**
**2022/23**|**EXPENDITURE**
**2022/23**|**BUDGET**
**2023/24**| |---|---|---|---| |Advertising|£3,500.00|£3,304.54|£3,500.00| |Professional service|£1,000.00|£942.34|| |Wellbeingof staff and volunteers|||£1,600.00| |Insurance|£1,500.00|£1,328.54|£1,500.00| |General Expenses|£150.00|£330.94|£100.00| |Stationery/Postage/Printing|£1,400.00|£791.38|£1,300.00| |Rent|£6,000.00|£5,000.00|£6,000.00| |External/room hire|||£300.00| |Fund RaisingEvents|£500.00|£0.00|£300.00| |Staff Salaries|£30,000.00|£24,138.47|£38,906.00| |Telephone|£1,500.00|£1,699.99|| |IT and telephone services|||£4,420.00| |Consultancyand contracts|||£1,000.00| |Subscriptions|||£100.00| |Counsellors’ Expenses|£3,900.00|£5,907.87|£6,000.00| |Trainingand supervision|£5,200.00|£6,320.11|£6,000.00| |Office equipment|||£1,000.00| |Furniture & Equipment|£200.00|£2,631.65|£150.00| |Computer Equipment and activity|£7,000.00|£6,837.10|| |IT and telephone equipment|||£1,750.00| |**TOTAL**|**£61,850.00**|**£59,233.34**|**£76,276.00**| The expenditure in **2022/23** was **£2,617** less than was budgeted for. This was due in part to HARCSAC being without a service support worker for almost three months. At the end of **2022/23** our cash in hand balance was **£43,502.** In line with the Trustees decision last year to have sufficient reserves to maintain our service for 18 months, the Trustees have agreed to increase the reserve by **£25,000** from our cash in hand balance. This will enable us to offer continuity of service to women in the event that our current funding sources dry up and as a protection to the expected rise in running costs. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **14** of **18** ## **BUDGET FOR 2023/24** We have increased the budget for **2023/24** in the expectation that we will be appointing another part time worker to organise our planned group work to focus on the wellbeing of women on the waiting list. This additional worker will also plan a more efficient way of allocating volunteer support workers/counsellors to clients on the waiting list. We will also start to incur the costs of running another recruitment campaign to increase the number of trained volunteers. HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **15** of **18** ## **AUDITED ACCOUNTS – Page 1** ## **Income and Expenditure Account** HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **16** of **18** ## **AUDITED ACCOUNTS – Page 2** ## **Reserve Account** HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **17** of **18** ## _**Ways you can help…**_ Here are some ways to get involved. ## **Fundraise** Choose Herts Area Rape Crisis as your Company’s Charity of the Year. Arrange a fundraising event or activity. Take on a challenge. ## **Volunteer** Help at one of our events. ## **Donate** Make a contribution online, via bank transfer, by phone or by cheque. Provide prizes for us to auction or raffle. ## **Legacy Giving** Leave a gift in your will. ## **Contact details** P.O. Box 256, Hatfield. Hertfordshire. AL10 0NE Registered Charity: 1194253 www.hertsrapecrisis.org.uk ## **Telephone Admin** : 01707 276539 / **Email** : admin@hertsrapecrisis.org.uk **Telephone Helpline** : 01707 276512 / **Email:** helpline@hertsrapecrisis.org.uk Find us on **Facebook:** crisis87 / **Twitter** : @hertsrapecrisi5 HARCSAC Annual Report and Accounts 1[st] April 2022 – 31[st] March 2023 Page **18** of **18**