Hampshire council axes funding for sexual abuse support

As part of the savings proposal to plug the current £132m budget gap forecasted for 2025/26, Hampshire County Council has agreed to pull out of the joint contract for the Independent Sexual Violence Advocacy (ISVA) and Sexual Crime Therapeutic Services.

The funding will end in April 2025, raising fears that services will be under threat, increasing the likelihood of victims waiting longer. 

The ISVA Service is jointly funded and commissioned by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, Hampshire County Council, Southampton City Council and Portsmouth City Council.

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Council papers said the county council contributes £67,398 to the service across the whole of Hampshire. The city councils in Portsmouth and Southampton, and the council on the Isle of Wight, do not contribute funding for additional services in their areas.

With the decision to stop the ISVA and the Sexual Crime Therapeutic Service, the county council will save £84,198 from April 2025, as the full council agreed in November 2023.

However, despite the council’s approval, partners were concerned with the decision.

In a letter to the county council, police and crime commissioner Donna Jones said she was disappointed with the decision.

She said: “Reducing the therapeutic sessions to minimise waiting times is not an option, and ethically, it is not considered safe to offer counselling with a tighter limit on the number of sessions.

Police and crime commissioner Donna Jones has criticised the decision (Image: Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Communications team)

“Group work may likely become the mandatory pathway with reduced funding as there will be reduced individual sessions, and this is not the preferred option.

“Innovation across the Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton area has led to the development of innovative programmes such as the LOTUS residential and day services, enabling victims and survivors to access support more quickly, helping to reduce waiting times.

“Such services would be under direct threat if funding is reduced at the level proposed, again increasing the likelihood of victims waiting longer.”

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Chief executive at Community First, Tim Houghton, said it will suffer a “significant impact” on the level of service it can offer, with the cuts reducing its overall budget by 13 per cent.

It will also suffer a reduction in the number of counselling teams and hours, impacting its capacity to meet the demand.

Mr Houghton said: “This cut will result in a forecast 30 per cent reduction in response time to referrals and enquiries and longer waiting times to access counselling. Needs assessments are currently undertaken in 10 days and could take up to 15 days if the funding is reduced as planned.

“We estimate that likely waiting times to access counselling will increase from two to three months to four to five months. Experience to date shows us that the longer victims and survivors have to wait to access support at each stage in the process leads to increased anxiety, distress, and risks worsening their mental wellbeing.”