SEXUAL violence can have devastating and life-changing effects on its victims - but a Swindon service offers confidential support.

The Sexual Assault Referral Centre in South Marston provides support to people who have been sexually assaulted or raped, regardless of whether or not they have reported these crimes to the police.

The clients can book an appointment themselves or be referred to the centre by the police as part of a police investigation.

Either way, they receive practical and emotional support, referrals to counselling services, advice on sexual health, guidance on their safety planning, and if within a certain forensic timeframe, they can supported by a team of experienced crisis workers and forensic nurses through a medical examination to collect forensic evidence.

If the police are involved, the forensic evidence will be included in the crime investigation.

If they are not, the results are stored for up to two years to give the victims time to process what happened and consider their options, so that if the police are contacted at a later date, the evidence is still available.

The statistics available for these crimes may not show the full extent of the issue as many of these offences and violations go unreported.

Myths and uncertainty about what is considered sexual assault or concerns about how the survivor may be perceived if they report it are stopping some from ever speaking out about it.

The Adver spoke to the SARC outreach coordinator Lewis Leggatt about tackling these myths and encouraging people to get the help they need.

He said:“Rape myths are prevalent. We’ve already seen how myths about stranger danger aren’t helpful when it comes to child abuse, the same applies here. People often think that the main perpetrators of rape are strangers when this isn’t the case.

"Crime survey stats show that these only account for approximately 16 per cent of cases. It is one of the barriers to support which stop people coming forward.”

The 2020 Crime survey for England and Wales revealed that one of the the most common reasons for survivors staying quiet about what happened to them is embarrassment.

Others are thinking it should be kept a private matter and not telling anyone, worrying people will not believe you, or not wanting the police to be involved.

Lewis added: “People often don’t realise that consent is continual and should be checked repeatedly, not just once. Consent is also conditional -someone may only agree to certain acts and not to others.

"Thankfully, the SARC is well placed to address these concerns and we work hard to support our clients through what is often a very difficult time.

"Our job is not to investigate crime, it’s to support victims confidentially and we take that confidentiality very seriously.”

Nationally, drinks spiking hit the headlines after reports of victims being drugged by injection while on nights out shocked the nation.

In Swindon, this prompted police to increase their patrols around Swindon’s pubs and clubs in a bid to reassure people going on a night out.

Victims around the town spoke about their experiences and started a boycott of nightclubs and bars to raise awareness of drink spiking as well as push for more to be done to keep revellers safe.

In June, the Swindon and Wiltshire SARC saw a spike in calls from male victims after the Channel 5 documentary When Women Abuse Men aired, though the drinks spiking did not cause a similar rise.

Mr Leggatt added: “We want to raise awareness amongst the public that they can come to us for support if they believe they have been spiked and then sexually assaulted, regardless of how long ago it happened.

Call the SARC on 01793 781916, email sw.sarc@firstlight.org.uk or make a referral online at www.firstlight.org.uk/swindonwiltshiresarc/