Summary notes for Best Practice Model

Sept 2013

GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR RAPE CRISIS MEMBER CENTRES

Ethos / Values

HUMAN RIGHTS FEMINISM

EQUALITIES

The Guiding principles for Rape Crisis Centre Services reflect the Ethos & Values held within the organisation: Feminism, Human Rights and Equalities. It is essential that all board, staff and volunteers are inducted into the core ethos of the organisation and this understanding is reflect in practice, communications and partnership work. Therefore a robust, informative and reflective approach to all inductions will be a valuable in supporting an organisational understanding of the guiding principles.

the core model: Rape Crisis Centres (RCC) services

Rape Crisis Centres: services

Operating Principles: The operating principles from which Rape Crisis Centre’s (RCC) function are interlinked with the Guiding principles of Feminism, Equalities and Human Rights. The operating principles form the structure of:

  • What direct services are offered to survivors
  • How direct services are offered to survivors
  • How RCC’s engage with other agencies / organisations
  • How RCC’s work top hold perpetrators accountable
  • How RCC’s facilitate the social change necessary to reduce and eliminate sexual violence

Gender Based Power:RCCs demonstrate an appropriate and informed approach, relevant to survivors and supporters using their services, which recognises the gendered dynamics, impacts and consequences of sexual violence within a feminist, equality and human rights perspective.[1]

Reduced Power Analysis:RCCs are aware of additional factors that influence vulnerability to sexual violence and take account of those factors in survivor centred services. Members of marginalise as oppressed groups in society have different vulnerabilities to sexual violence and receive different responses when they disclose sexual violence e.g. survivors from deaf and learning disability communities.

Survivor Centred Approach: RCCs operate from the knowledge that survivors have the capacity to grow and change and that they are the experts in what they need to support their growth and change. In order for survivors to act on those capacities, they need to be safe, secure and have their dignity explicitly recognised.[2]

Indicators of recovery (individual experiences are respected throughout their engagement with support services)

  • Empowerment
  • Safety
  • Creation / restoration of positive regard for self
  • Reconnecting to the world
  • Establishment / re- establishment of intimacy capacity

Survivor identified indicators of recovery and healing inform the way in which services are delivered by RCCs.

Trauma Based Approach: RCCs develop support services which understand that a survivor’s reaction is a normal response to a trauma.

Survivors have identified the following as important in support services:

  • Being met with warmth and acceptance
  • Being offered both emotional and practical support within a safe environment
  • Having support from people who understand the impact of sexual violence
  • Being validated ‐ reactions to the trauma are normal and not sick or maladaptive
  • Being believed
  • Understanding the need to maintain confidentiality
  • Offering assistance in navigating the medical and legal processes
  • Being able to regain some degree of control over the process
  • Feeling that the choices are theirs.[3]

Holding perpetrators accountable:RCCs are particularly aware of a culture of victim blaming and therefore emphasise holding perpetrators to account for their decisions and actions - placing the focus on a perpetrator’s behaviour. A human rights approach is utilised in holding agencies to account for their responsibilities to respond to sexual violence and to work towards its prevention.

Improve Societal responses:Survivors, whether in contact with a Rape Crisis Centre or not, may need to access a range of services at different times, and may also encounter difficulties reconnecting with community. Research tells us that victims of sexual violence can experience victim blaming attitudes, behaviours and practices from a variety of service providers resulting in additional trauma for rape survivors.

Rape Crisis Centres undertake this work by:

  • Engaging with inter agency work
  • National / local forums,
  • Advisory committees and consultation groups
  • Providing training to other professionals and organisations, particularly frontline staff or first-responders to aid
  • Institutional advocacy means working with other agencies, organisations and professionals specifically to improve the responses that survivors will receive in the future.

Social Changes:This is the work that addresses the societal attitudes and structures which perpetuate, enable and even support sexual violence. The intention is to have a real and measurable impact on societal attitudes and structures which contribute to the acceptability of sexual violence and additionally hold perpetrators accountable for their decisions and actions.

Examples:

  • Public awareness activities
  • Press releases,
  • Launches seminars, conferences, events
  • Campaigns targeted as society as a whole and education programmes.

In order to evidence change it is important to include an evaluation process which can undertake specific outcome measurements.

Example of Campaign work for social change: Rape Crisis Scotland – This is not an invitation to rape me[4]

Considerations for implementing the Best Practice Model

All board, staff and volunteers have an understanding of and are inducted into the Best Practice Model Ethos /Values.

All board, staff and volunteers have an understanding of Operating Principles for service provision.

The inclusion of the Best Practice Model within the organisation can be evidenced within the Rape Crisis Service Standards.

Mapping Rape Crisis Service Standards against the Best Practice Model

Ethos / Values / Governance / (RCN) Service Standards
Feminism
Human Rights
Equalities / Five principles of good governance, as originally enunciated by the United Nations Development Programme include:
  • Legitimacy & Voice – all have a voice in decision-making
  • Direction - a strategic vision for the organisation
  • Performance-responsive to stakeholders, and processes that are effective and efficient
  • Accountability - decision makers are accountable and the processes and information is directly accessible to those concerned
  • Fairness – all involved have opportunities to improve or maintain their well-being.[5]
/ Evidenced within RCNSS sections:
Section One: Organisation requirements
Section Two: Values
Section Three: Strategy and Governance
Section Seven: Diversity, Equality And Access
Note:
Please note that the board leadership and governance will also be reflected in other service standards and that the board hold overall responsibility for the organisations completion of and adherence to the RCNSS
Ethos / Values / Operational Principles for RCC services / (RCN) Service Standards
Feminism
Human Rights
Equalities / Gender based Power
Reduced Power Analysis
Survivor Centred Approach
Trauma Based Approach
Hold Perpetrators Accountable / Evidenced within RCNSS sections:
Section Two: Vales
Section Four: Managing services
Section Five: Working with Service Users
Section six: Protecting service Users and staff / volunteers
Section Seven: Diversity, Equalities and Access
Section Eight: Service User Involvememt / Participation
Section Nine: Developing theOrganisation
Note:
Please note that the operational services / practice / management will also be reflected in other sections of the service standards
(Standards One and Three)

References:

Kelly, L. & Dubois, L. Combating violence against women: minimum standards for support services, Directorate General of Human Rights and Legal Affairs, Council of Europe, 2008

Jordan, Jan, Reporting Rape, Women’s Experiences with the Police, Doctors and Support Agencies, Institute of Criminology, Victoria University of Wellington, 1998.

Rape Crisis Scotland campaign site at (October 2008)

Graham, J. et al Principles for Good Governance in the 21st Century: Policy Brief 15, Institute on Governance, August 2003, accessed 18/02/08.

Rape Crisis National Service Standards, Rape Crisis England & Wales & Rape Crisis Scotland, 2010

RNCI Criteria for Members, 2009.

RCNI Principles & Ethos Statement, 2007.

RCNI Code of Ethics, 2007.

1

[1]Kelly, L., & Dubois, L.

[2]Kelly, L. & Dublin, L. Council of Europe Minimum Standards.

[3]Reporting rape: Jordan, J.(1998)

[4] RCS: This is not an invitation to Rape me campaign, 2008

[5]Graham, et al