MORE THAN 7,000 people contacted the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre’s national 24-hour helpline for the first time in 2021.

The Centre’s annual report for 2021 shows that, in total, there were 14,012 contacts made to the National Helpline last year compared with 13,438 in 2020.

Most contacts related to rape (43.5%) followed by child sexual abuse (30%) and
adult sexual assault (13.4%). Sexual harassment was cited by 1.1% of callers.

In terms of gender, some 81% of callers were women, 18.7% were men and
0.3% identified as other.

7,900 people were first-time contacts to the line.

In terms of age, a significant cohort were those aged 50-59, at about 20.8% of contacts. Some 36.9% of contacts were from young adults aged under 30 years.

The line was at its busiest in September and November. These two months were also the busiest for first-time callers with 767 contacts in September and 745 contacts in November.

The DRCC’s accompaniment service, which gives to support to survivors at visits to the Rotunda Hospital’s Sexual Assault Treatment Unit and in the justice system in court and at Garda stations, was “heavily impacted” by Covid-19 restrictions.

However, it saw large increases in contacts last year, with more people requesting support around reporting and court processes. 

In 2021, the DRCC supported 210 victims/survivors in garda stations and other such settings, almost double the 106 people supported in 2020. The time devoted to such support also rose from 241 hours in 2020 to 367 hours in 2021.

The DRCC also supported 45 victims/survivors in court and similar settings in 2021, almost the same as in 2020 when it supported 44 people. The time given to this work increased to 348 hours, up 80% from 2020 when we provided 193 hours of support.

Therapy and counselling services are provided by the DRCC face-to-face, online and over the phone. 

Last year, the DRCC had 580 therapy clients, of which 289 were new and 291 were ongoing. 

Of completed sessions, 54% were crisis appointments for clients who had experienced sexual violence within the previous six months, and 46% for past sexual violence.

Some 62.44% of DRCC clients disclosed sexual violence experienced as adult, and the remaining 37.6% had been abused as children – 6% had been subjected to sexual violence as a child and as an adult.

The 24-hour helpline run by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre can be contacted on 1800 778 888, or you can find your closest centre here.