Government engaging with rape crisis centre after waiting lists shut – Swinney

First Minister John Swinney has said the Government is working with Scotland’s largest rape crisis centre after it announced it had been forced to close waiting lists for two of its support services.

Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis said it is “truly heartbroken” about the situation, especially as “demand for our services continues to increase”.

It said it had to act as cash from the Scottish Government has not kept pace with the “unprecedented demand” for help from survivors.

Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis said it was told of what it described as a “real-terms cut” to its funding last week.

While it said it has written to equalities minister Kaukab Stewart on “numerous occasions”, it had received “nothing but generic responses back”.

A letter sent to Ms Stewart on Monday complained that money allocated under the Government’s Delivering Equally Safe fund had “remained effectively static since 2021”.

Lanarkshire Rape Crisis Centre and the Star Centre – Rape Crisis Ayrshire and Arran also raised concerns in a letter which warned that with services already “under significant pressure”, they had “reached a point where the gap between need and resource is unsustainable”.

Hitting out at the Scottish Government, the directors of the three centres said it is now “extremely difficult to reconcile public commitments to tackling violence against women and girls with a budget that reduces the real-terms value of the very services designed to respond to it”.

Mr Swinney said Government has now “engaged with” Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis about its funding.

Speaking during a visit to Perth, the First Minister added that ministers will be “discussing those issues with them”.

It came as he insisted: “The Government is providing extensive funding for rape crisis centres around the country as part of our work to ensure that women who experience and suffer rape and sexual violence are able to be supported and access the support they require.”

Adding that support is “comprehensive around the country”, Mr Swinney confirmed: “We are obviously engaged with the Glasgow Rape Crisis centre about the funding issues they have raised.”