Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, (a) how many Sexual Assault Referral Centres there were in each of the 42 Crown Prosecution Service areas and (b) how much was spent on those centres in each year since 2009-10.

The Ministry of Justice does not hold primary responsibility for funding Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) and cannot provide the information requested.

The Ministry of Justice provides core grant funding of c£63m to Police and Crime Commissioners to deliver/commission support services for victims of crime (including victims of sexual violence), with an additional c£4.7m specifically to support victims of child sexual abuse. PCC funding decisions relating to allocations to SARCs are made locally.

In April 2013, NHS England took over the lead commissioning role for sexual assault referral centre commissioning. NHS England, with a range of partners in the health system (e.g. Clinical Commissioning Groups), Local Authorities and the Criminal Justice System (e.g. Police, Police and Crime Commissioners) is jointly responsible for the commissioning of a cost-effective, integrated response to sexual violence and rape in order to meet the needs of local populations.

As part of the Government’s wider strategy for tackling sexual violence, the Ministry of Justice also allocates funding for rape support provision across England and Wales. This includes funding in 2017/18 of c£7.2m to 97 Rape Support Centres which provide direct support to male and female victims of sexual violence.