Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page

On the 24 of March I will be competing in a charity boxing match held by Ultra White Collar boxing. I’ll have 8 weeks of boxing training leading up to the fight and I plan on getting in the best shape possible to prepare!

For a long time I have wanted to raise money for Rape Crisis Scotland, they provide crucial support and resources to victims of sexual abuse, they are at the forefront of the fight for change in laws and policies concerning the rights of victims and the challenges of getting a guilty verdict in court. 

Already they have successfully campaigned for changes to the court processes, with them playing a big part in the long awaited decision to abolish the ‘not proven’ verdict in Scotland. They constantly work to lift up survivors voices and ensure the Scottish government hear what survivors have to say about their experiences. They are actively working to get victims legal representation in court cases- as most don’t realise that victims have absolutely no idea what’s happening with their case as the procreative fiscal does not work on their behalf, rather on the behalf of public safety. Victims have to endure on average 2 years of silence from the police and the justice system on the status of their case, most of the time to be told that their report will be taken no further. 

Statistics gathered by the Scottish government show that only 48% of rape cases resulted in a conviction in 2021-22. In 2020-21 2,298 reports were made, only 152 managed to get charged and 78 convicted. Only 78 out of 2,298 victims got justice. To put into context, non sexual crimes see over 70% conviction rate even up to 94% for some crimes, while rape has remained the lowest convicted crime in the past 10 years. 

Rape crisis Scotland do the best with what they have to spread awareness of these challenges for victims, however with lack of funding they struggle to keep their doors open to new referrals for victims and face losing up to 28 support workers this year. 

It would mean the world if you could donate what you can to this cause, as thousands of women each year go through despicable trauma only to be dismissed by police and the legal system. 

Sources:

https://www.rapecrisisscotland.org.uk/resources-stats-key-info/#rlslider_3

https://www.gov.scot/publications/criminal-proceedings-scotland-2021-22/pages/9/#:~:text=The%20conviction%20rate%20for%20Rape,the%20most%20recent%2010%20years.