Referral centres offer practical and emotional care for victims of sexual assault - column by Amanda Farquhar, service manager of Lincolnshire's Sexual Assault Referral Centre

Last week, as part of Sexual Abuse and Sexual Violence Awareness Week, the NHS launched a national campaign to highlight the support offered at SARCs in England.

Sexual Assault Referral Centres, often referred to as SARCs, are specialist NHS services that provide a safe space and dedicated care for any adult, male or female, who has been raped, sexually assaulted or abused. They are available for everyone, regardless of when the incident happened and offer practical, medical and emotional support 24/7.

A survey recently carried out by the NHS found two in five people aren’t sure or do not know where to get help after being sexually assaulted, with 72% unaware there are NHS specialist sexual assault services that can offer confidential support. More than half of people who have experienced sexual assault also say they did not seek help afterwards.

Spring Lodge, Lincolnshire’s SARC, is run by Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (LPFT) and has been providing support to people in the county for almost 12 years.

The centre, which is jointly commissioned by the Office of Police and Crime Commissioner and NHS England and Improvement, aims to help empower people by informing them of their options and assisting people in making their own decisions about their recovery.

A common misunderstanding is that we only work with recent cases or those wishing to report to the police, but that is not the case.

One of the services provided by the centre is the Independent Sexual Violence Advisor (ISVA) service, which offers practical and emotional support to anyone over the age of 18 who has been raped or sexually assaulted, either recently or in the past. The team can help with everything from understanding any possible legal case and the police process, even if clients don’t want to make things formal, through to providing emotional support and helping clients to access other support services, if needed.

Spring Lodge also provides forensic medical examinations, as well as the opportunity to gather intelligence from victims wishing to tell the police about their perpetrator without reporting or giving their name.

If you need support turn to us, we are here.

For more information about Spring Lodge and the services it provides visit www.lpft.nhs.uk/spring-lodge or call 01522 524402.

The Castle Project, a Victim Support initiative, provides support services to children and young people who have been victims of child sexual exploitation, sexual violence, sexual offences, rape and sexual abuse. For more information visit www.victimsupport.org.uk/resources/lincolnshire/