Trans Inclusion Statement

We are a trans inclusive organisation

We are the Rape Crisis Centre for Sussex. We have been supporting survivors of sexual violence for over thirty years and, since 2011, we have actively & publicly welcomed trans women into our women’s services, and people of all genders into our other services.

We are a feminist organisation and we support survivors of all genders. Survivors of trauma & sexual violence, irrespective of gender identity, need support, care and belief. With 30 years of expert knowledge we are well equipped to offer this in a safe, survivor-led and empowerment-based way.

Trans-inclusive feminism is key to our values and central to our services as a Rape Crisis Centre. Nearly 1 in 5 trans people have experienced sexual assault or the threat of sexual assault  (Galop) and we are committed to supporting our trans siblings in their survival journey.

Safety is at the heart of our offer

We are a trauma-informed organisation with robust safeguarding procedures & training in place to support the safety of everyone who accesses and delivers our services. We are an expert service, well-equipped to deal with situations that may arise because of the trauma that our clients have experienced. Our referral system ensures that we speak to and assess all service users when they contact us to work out what the most appropriate support is for them. Survivors have varied and disparate triggers for distress: we take the wellbeing of our service users very seriously and do all that we can to create safer spaces.

Respectful environments

Part of our work to create safer spaces involves seeking to actively challenge all forms of oppression within our services and sector, including (but not limited to) racism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, classism, and ableism. We are constantly working to expand access to Survivors’ Network for clients, volunteers and staff who are under-represented. We are committed to continuous learning around inclusive service delivery.

We are committed to ensuring respectful, inclusive language and behaviour in all our spaces (including online) and we equip our staff to have careful, informed and supportive conversations with each other and service users to facilitate this.  We have an active commitment to challenge discrimination when we witness it, including deliberate misgendering of service users or staff.

Consent & access

We root our practice in the fundamental principle of consent, and do not disclose trans users’ gender history without their permission.

We recognise that it can be difficult to access a rape crisis centre for the first time, and that survivors may feel unsure about what services are the best fit for them. If a survivor is worried that their gender identity may impact the use of a service, we encourage them to contact us to discuss any concerns.