Advocacy & Support
Our service is free, inclusive, non-judgemental and confidential for survivors who have experienced sexual violence or abuse at any time in their lives. This can include rape, non-consensual image sharing, unwanted touching and kissing (What is sexual violence?)
Our Advocacy Service is for survivors who have reported or are considering reporting recent or historic sexual violence. We can offer you a safe and confidential space and support you to understand the criminal justice process. You can access the Advocacy Service on its own or alongside our other support services.
What we can offer
Sharing and explaining information about the process and answering any questions
Support to report to the police or not
If you choose to report to the police, this can be arranged with a specialist trained police officer
Liaise on your behalf
Pre- and post-trial support
Emotional and practical support throughout the criminal justice process, however long this
may take
You may need to speak to a variety of professionals at different points, which can be overwhelming. An Advocacy Worker will support you with this and could be your point of contact throughout the criminal justice process.
An Advocacy Worker is independent of the criminal justice process, but will provide emotional support and information throughout a legal process.
Although we can offer the above, we are unable to offer legal advice or an opinion on whether you should report or not, or advice on how to give evidence in court. We also cannot give advice or assistance when completing Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority applications.
You can access the Advocacy Service at any point during the criminal justice process, by contacting us through any of these methods:
- Contact us
- Through your Unity or Sunrise support worker
- If you are looking to access the Oakleaf Centre (Forensic Medical Examination Suite at the Borders General Hospital) please follow the link for further information – Arranging a forensic medical examination (FME) | NHS inform – or call 0800 148 88 88.
SBRCC: A Guide to the Advocacy Service
SBRCC: Survivors Guide to the Criminal Justice System
RCS: Guide to the Criminal Justice System
