Glasgow’s rape crisis centre has warned of a “west of Scotland bias” amid warnings of chronic underfunding from the national organisation.
The Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis (GCRC) has repeatedly warned its services were at risk of closure without “urgent and adequate” financial investment.
Staff have been lobbying the Scottish Government and Rape Crisis Scotland, which administers the funds, for additional support as demand soars, but told The Herald there has been “no real movement”.
The internal dispute centres around how the Victim-Centred Approach Funding (VCAF) is distributed amongst regional rape crisis centres.
The Scottish Government allocated £2,012,872 to Rape Crisis Scotland to provide advocacy support to survivors in the justice system.
GCRC’s allocation from the national organisation was £171,000 in 2024-25, with similar funding levels continuing in subsequent years.
Glasgow’s allocation was made up to £181,336 after underspends by other centres were redistributed.
However, despite being Scotland’s largest rape crisis centre, serving six local authority areas, it receives just over an eighth of the entire fund.
It also makes contact with at least 40,000 rape and sexual violence survivors each year.
Meanwhile, in Edinburgh, £182,250 was awarded to the centre serving four local authority areas. Grampian, serving two council areas, received £126,000, while Highlands, serving one, got £137,250, according to official accounts.
Rape Crisis Scotland said Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway and the Highlands received ring-fenced funding to deliver a pilot project for pre-recorded victim evidence, representing £64,894 of the capital's funding.
GCRC estimates that it costs roughly £500 to support an individual survivor – but the funding covers around £365 each, £135 short of the required sum.
Claudia Macdonald-Bruce, the director of GCRC, told our sister title The Herald: “Anyway you cut it, we’re being underserved and underinvested in.”
She added: “There’s rising rapes and reporting of sexual violence. Glasgow is still the most unsafe city in Scotland. The evidence is there on the need and for us, we’re not really understanding why there’s such an apathy to fully invest and support survivors in the west of Scotland.
“It feels like there is potentially some sort of inherent west of Scotland bias playing out here or there’s just not the understanding that’s needed about the demand we have.”
Ms Macdonald-Bruce said staff and service users are left in limbo awaiting clarity on additional funding.
Ms Macdonald-Bruce told The Herald there has been little progress on the financial “crisis” despite the meeting with government officials in December, after waiting nine months for correspondence.
Her organisation has also been allocated £549,483 from the Scottish Government’s Delivering Equally Safe Fund (DESF), however that covers all other services. This funding is not set to increase for the upcoming financial year.
The rape crisis director said the funding, while the same as previous years, is the equivalent of a “substantial shortfall” based on soaring demand.
In the last year, 2,824 women and girls were supported by the crisis centre, with the youngest being 13 and the oldest, 79. Across this service area alone, there are 605,600 women and girls who may need their help.
An additional £500,000 is required, according to Ms Macdonald-Bruce, across both funds.
The funding requests are in line with a 15% rise in the number of rapes and attempted rapes recorded in Scotland, the director said.
Official statistics published last year showed sexual crimes overall increased by 3% to the second highest level since 1971.
She added: “It’s heartbreaking. Our workers feel it and I have to make decisions that go against every aspect of my heart and the humanity of survivors. It feels like it is just another symptom of a society that doesn’t prioritise the safety and healing of women and girls.
“I can’t make it any clearer. This can’t continue without adding to the detriment of survivors.”
Sally Brindley, chief executive of Rape Crisis Scotland, said there was "no way" to provide additional resources without taking them away from elsewhere.
She said: “We agree that there needs to be additional support and that it should be based on the need for services in each area of the country.
"Earlier this year, we wrote to the Scottish Government to ask for increased advocacy funding for all rape crisis centres, proportionate to each local service’s individual demands. This included a £500,000 uplift for Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis Centre’s advocacy services – which help survivors navigating the criminal justice process – based on a clear and urgent need for extra resources there.”
Tess White, equalities spokeswoman for the Scottish Tories, said the underfunding was a “dereliction of duty by SNP ministers”.
Equalities minister Kaukab Stewart said: “We remain steadfast in our commitment to preventing and eradicating all violence against women and girls and addressing the underlying attitudes and systems that perpetuate it.
“The Scottish Government is delivering £21.6 million to the Delivering Equally Safe Fund for 2026-27, to allow all fund recipients to continue the vital work they undertake to prevent violence and support survivors.
“Supported organisations including Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis Centre has been updated on funding arrangements for 2026-27.”
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