December 4th marked two years since I took up the role of CEO of Rape Crisis England & Wales.
It seems impossible to believe that in that time, our small team of under 20 staff have managed to organise a national conference celebrating 50 years of Rape Crisis; publish six reports; achieved legal change to improve the treatment of survivors in the criminal justice system; delivered support to survivors 24 hours a day, every day, without pause, and successfully campaigned to secure the much-needed continuation of the government’s only ring-fenced funding for specialist and community-based sexual violence services. All this and more - in less time than it takes to learn a second language.
But whilst in some ways I look back on all that we’ve achieved and wonder where the time went, there are also moments when it feels as though time moves impossibly - glacially - slowly.
Five decades on from the inception of our movement, Rape Crisis Centres and the invaluable work they do with survivors of Child Rape and Sexual Abuse (CRaSA) is still too often overlooked and underfunded, services run by and for Black and minoritised women and those with insecure immigration status or no recourse to public funds face serious funding challenges, and a survivor who reported her rape to the police on the same day that I took up my post would still now be waiting for her case to go to trial if it was investigated or charged at all, which – statistically – is unlikely.
Ours is a movement in which time moves both quickly and slowly at the same time. The routine request for disclosure of therapy notes pre-trial will, thankfully, come to an end because of our efforts, as will the use of a prior disclosure of sexual violence as evidence of a survivor’s ‘bad character’ by defence barristers.
And yet the care, justice, restitution and recovery that all survivors should have confidence in, and be able to take for granted, remains largely out of reach for far too many. I have the privilege of working alongside some brilliant women as I contend with those challenges. I’ve been inspired by them, supported by them, more than tested by them, and cried on a few of their shoulders, too.
Leadership requires us to remain open to a diverse range of perspectives and experiences. This openness helps us to understand problems more deeply, and to embrace change. In a world that has transformed dramatically over the last decade, this willingness to learn, adapt, and evolve is both essential and non-negotiable.
So - I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you for both supporting and challenging me along the way. Your dedication and insights have shaped our journey, and I’m excited for what the next two years will bring. Hopefully, this will be increased stability and sustainability within our movement, continued progress in policy and legislative reform to better support survivors, and more opportunities to learn, grow, and find joy in the work we do.