Sexual Assault & Rape

It may feel harder to access support if you are a male due to stigmatisation, and many completely false myths. The services mentioned on this webpage, all actively support those who identify as a man or are male.

Nottinghamshire’s Sexual Violence Services 

This service provides practical and emotional support for anyone affected by sexual violence. Visit their support for males webpage here.

It may feel harder to access support if you are part of the LGBTQ+ community due to stigmatisation. The services mentioned on this webpage, all actively support those who identify as LGBTQ+.

Nottinghamshire’s Sexual Violence Services 

This service provides practical and emotional support for anyone affected by sexual violence.

They know that people who identify as LGBTQ+ may have specific fears about:

• being perceived as responsible for the abuse
• encountering homophobic, biphobic or transphobic services
• what will happen to them or their loved ones if they get help

They believe that

• responsibility always sits with the perpetrator
• sexual violence can happen in any relationship
• sexual violence or child sexual abuse is not the result or cause of a person’s gender identity or sexuality
• someone always has the right to say no or withdraw consent, even if they have been engaging in consensual sexual activity or have consented in the past
• an adult does not need to report to the police to get support

Visit their Support for LGBTQ+ page here.

If you think someone is in immediate danger, please call the police on 999 straight away.  

University of Nottingham (UON) Report and Support  

Use Report and Support anonymously to tell them what happened or ask to speak an advisor. By making a report through their system you are not making an official report or complaint to the University, it is to enable you access support to help you make an informed decision. 

Email reportandsupport@nottingham.ac.uk or visit their website.

University of Nottingham Sexual Violence Liaison Officer (SVLO) Service   

These qualified staff members support Students who have experienced sexual harassment, abuse, and violence either recently or in the past. They understand that seeking advice and support for a sexual assault can be a very difficult and personal decision, and so have established a specialised support service for students. 

Request an SVLO here.

Nottingham Trent University (NTU) Student Support Services Sexual Violence Support  

NTU have a team of trained Sexual Violence Liaison Officers (SVLOs). They offer support to students who have experienced any form of sexual violence. The support is confidential, respectful, and non-judgemental. You do not need to disclose anything to the team that you are not comfortable doing so. They will respect your wishes and needs. 

This support can include: 

• Offering you a single point of contact within the University 
• Sharing information about specialist support services 
• Sharing information about what reporting to the police or the university can look like 
• Working with your course team in cases where there are impacts on your studies, or you may need adjustments or time out
• Advising you about the Notification of Extenuating Circumstances process 
• offering a point of contact during the period of any police investigation.

To self-refer for sexual violence support, report with contact details through report and support here, or find out more about NTU’s report and support here.

NTSU Information & Advice Service 

The Information & Advice Service (IAS) provides advice, information and representation services. It’s free and confidential and available to all students at Nottingham Trent University. The IAS is an AQS-accredited advice service provider. 

Visit the NTSU website for more information here.

Nottingham Trent University Survivors Support Network 

The Survivors Support Network (SSN) is a student group, created and run by NTU students. The network founder writes: ‘We are a safe space for self-identifying women who have experienced sexual violence or violence of any kind at NTU. We aim to create a supportive and uplifting environment to empower our community, in a space you know you can be heard and understood in.

Join this community via this link.

Children often do not talk about sexual abuse because they think it is their fault or their abuser has convinced them that it is normal or a “special secret”. They may have also been bribed, threatened, or wish to protect the abuser from getting into trouble.

Here are some of the signs you may notice:

• Changes in their behaviour – a child may start being aggressive, withdrawn, clingy, have difficulties sleeping, have regular nightmares or start wetting the bed.
• Avoiding the abuser – the child may dislike or seem afraid of a particular person and try to avoid spending time alone with them.
• Sexually inappropriate behaviour – children who have been abused may behave in sexually inappropriate ways or use sexually explicit language.
• Physical problems – the child may develop health problems, including soreness in the genital and anal areas or sexually transmitted infections, or they may become pregnant.
• Problems at school – an abused child may have difficulty concentrating and learning, and their grades may start to drop.
• Giving clues – children may also drop hints and clues that the abuse is happening without revealing it outright.

Read NHS advice on Child sexual abuse here.

Child Sexual Exploitation

Children who’ve been sexually abused are also at risk of sexual exploitation, in which children are sometimes passed around a network of abusers for sexual purposes. Read about Child Sexual Exploitation here.

If you think a child is in immediate danger, please call the police on 999 straight away. 

East Midlands Children and Young People’s Sexual Assault Service (NHS) 

Whether you are the child victim of Sexual Assault, or want advice on seeking help on their behalf, this service can give you the support you need, for as long as you need us. Visit their website here.

Advice line: 0800 183 0023 (24/7 hour service) 

SV2 – Support for under 18s

Advice and counselling. SV2 provides an ISVA (Independent Sexual Violence Advisor) or CHISVA (Children’s Independent Sexual Violence Advisor) service for anyone who has been the victim of rape, sexual assault or abuse. There is a vast range of support that an ISVA/CHISVA can offer, but their main role is to provide emotional and practical support for anyone who has experienced current or historic rape, sexual abuse or assault. 

Visit their website here.

Call 01773 746 115 (Mon –Fri 9am – 5pm), email help@sv2.org.uk.

NSPCC 

The NSPCC is the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. Through their NSPCC website, you can read about what sexual abuse of a child is, the signs, the effects, and reporting for cases of sexual abuse. It provides support in cases where either the child has been abused or another person has abused them. 

Ring their helpline 0808 800 5000, due to an increase in demand it is operating 11am – 5pm Mon- Friday.

You can still email help@NSPCC.org.uk or complete their report abuse online form at any time for free. You don’t have to say who you are. 

Visit this link for advice relating to the Sexual Assault of a child by a school peer. It can guide you on topics relating to legal support, and Sexual Assault referral centres for children.

Visit their website.

If you think someone is in immediate danger, please call the police on 999 straight away. 

Juno Women’s Aid is a domestic abuse charity that offers a 24-hour helpline for survivors of sexual violence and domestic abuse, including those in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.  

All women can also call the 24-hour helpline run by Juno Women’s Aid on 0808 800 0340, or visit their website here.

This helpline offers translation services, and access for those with hearing impairments. 

Domestic abuse can happen in any relationship

Anyone can experience domestic abuse, regardless of age, race, sex, gender identity, sexuality, ability, wealth, or lifestyle. Someone can experience abuse from a current or ex-partner, in a heterosexual or same-sex relationship, or from children or other family members.

Whoever you are and whatever abuse you’re experiencing, you’re not alone.

Sexual abuse can be a part of domestic abuse and can happen to people in their romantic or family relationships, To read more about domestic abuse and sexual abuse click here.

The Right to Ask Scheme

If you might be concerned about a partner’s or potential partner’s behaviour, you may want to consider this scheme.

The ‘Right to Ask’ gives an individual the opportunity to ask police if a partner or potential partner has an abusive past, as the scheme recognises that most perpetrators of domestic abuse are repeat offenders. Read more about it here.

The ‘Right to Ask’ gives anyone a right to ask the police if someone has an abusive past. If you’re concerned that you may be at risk of harm from a current or ex-partner, you can apply for information about them. The ‘Right to Ask’ can show if you may be at risk from someone and allow you to make informed decisions about your relationship.

Concerned friends, family members and professionals can also use the scheme if they’re worried about someone.

How to use the Right to Ask scheme 

Step One – Initial enquiry. You can do this with support from a Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS) Specialist, or directly with the police. You’ll be asked to give your name, address and date of birth. 

Step Two – Accepting your request. You will be contacted and asked to provide some form of ID and sign an agreement. This agreement outlines who any information will be shared with and what it can, and can’t, be used for. 

Step Three – Checks and Risk Assessment. The police will run checks and a risk assessment. If relevant information is found, they will meet with appropriate agencies to discuss what information can be shared. 

Step Four – The outcome. You will be contacted with the outcome confirming if there is, or is not, any information to be shared. If checks show that the person has a record of abusive offences, the police may disclose this information if they feel it can prevent future crimes. If there is information that cannot be shared, the police will consider other ways to protect the person at risk.