A society that acknowledges, supports, and advocates for men and non-binary people who have been affected by rape or sexual abuse.
Download SurvivorsUK’s 2019 – 2024 Strategy which outlines our inspiring plans to support more boys and men who experienced rape and sexual abuse.
We relentlessly work to ensure every boy, man, and non-binary person in the UK has access to the support they need to navigate the impact of sexual violence and begin their journey of recovery.
- Without exception
- Empathy as listeners
- Challenging perceptions
- Community
We provide a national online helpline, individual and group counselling for boys, men and non-binary people aged 13+ who have experienced sexual violence at any time in their lives. We also offer emotional support through the justice system, support for friends and families of survivors, and training for professionals and organisations.
Every year, more than 84,000 men, boys and non-binary people are raped, sexually abused or sexually assaulted. Of those only 4% manage to tell somebody at any point in their life; and for that tiny percentage, it takes an average of 26 years.
Stigma and shame, vulnerability, and inaccessible service design can all stop these survivors receiving support at any time, and we’re here to make sure that doesn’t happen.
SurvivorsUK has 35 years of experience working with men on their journey to recovery. We were one of the first organisation set up to specifically help men, and we have a unique understanding of their experiences and how we can best help them as survivors.
While SurvivorsUK’s priority is to help men, boys, and non-binary people on their journey to recovery, we pride ourselves on never turning anyone away who seeks our help – especially if they’ve been unable to receive support elsewhere.
In order to reduce our waiting lists, our individual counselling and ISVA services are limited to those currently residing in any London borough. If you are hoping to use our ISVA service, it is open to you if the abuse was committed in any London Borough, even if you do not currently reside in London. Our Groupwork service and national online helpline is available to anyone in the UK.
We help more than 150 people through our counselling service, and over 2,500 people access our national online helpline each year.
SurvivorsUK does not offer legal advice, however we operate the Civil Law Clinic with the law firm Bolt Burdon Kemp. You can book an appointment online to meet with a specialist abuse lawyer by clicking on the button at the bottom of this page. The appointment with a lawyer from Bolt Burdon Kemp is free.
1986
Founded
SurvivorsUK was founded in 1986 by Martin Dockrell and Richie McMullen. In their work with other organisations (Martin as a helpline worker at Lesbian and Gay Switchboard and Richie as the Director of Streetwise, a charity for male sex workers) they had taken calls from male survivors of rape, and had identified the lack of an appropriate service for these callers. From this, the idea for SurvivorsUK was born as a helpline service.
1989
Status
Charitable and company status was attained in 1989
1993
Survivors counselling service
The Survivors counselling service was developed at Wharfside Clinic, St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington
1996
The SurvivorsUK Helpline
The SurvivorsUK Helpline was opened and ran for three evenings each week. Groups started to run in Mile End.
1998
A multi-agency group
A multi-agency group was formed with Metropolitan Police focusing on Adult Male Survivors of sexual asault.
1999
The SurvivorsUK National Male Rape Training Initiative Project
The SurvivorsUK National Male Rape Training Initiative Project was launched using funding from the department of Health and the Community Fund.
2000
The SurvivorsUK National Male Survivors Centre Project
The SurvivorsUK National Male Survivors Centre Project began with funding from the Department of Health, securing a home for our organisation.
2002
The National Male Survivors Centre
The National Male Survivors Centre opened in London Bridge.
2006
The services delivered by SurvivorsUK
In the years between 2002 and 2006, the services delivered by SurvivorsUK grew quantitatively. Funding was secured through a series of Section 64 grants from the Department of Health and trust funding from The City Parochial Foundation, Allen Lane Foundation and Lloyds TSB.
2009
The salary costs of SurvivorsUK
The salary costs of SurvivorsUK were secured with funding from the Big Lottery Reaching Communities programme. Additional funding from the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office have stabilized the charity’s finances and allowed for a program of strengthening and development to be instituted.
2011
2011 marked the 25th anniversary of SurvivorsUK operations
2011 marked the 25th anniversary of SurvivorsUK operations and the charity delivered a series of fundraising and awareness building events including a gala concert featuring Lesley Garrett, Ian Shaw, Meow Meow, The London Gay Men’s Chorus and many others. This in combination with a landmark art event and participation in several London running events raised in excess of £30,000 over the year.
2012
We went to market with “Real Men Get Raped”
We went to market with “Real Men Get Raped”, an advertising campaign aimed at adult male rape victims. The campaign created a stir in the media and resulted in exposure to an audience of over 18,000,000.
2013
We launched our digital emotional support services
We launched our digital emotional support services.
2014
SurvivorsUK was the primary beneficiary of the Ministry of Justice
SurvivorsUK was the primary beneficiary of the Ministry of Justice Male Rape funding stream which has allowed the organisation to create the National Male Survivors Website resource and to increase its national digital support offering to 72 hours per week. The organisation has also appointed the first male specific Independent Sexual Violence Advisor for London and continues to broaden and deepen its partnership working to ensure that male survivors have the best opportunities to receive support for a broad cross spectrum of problems.
2016
SurvivorsUK officially opened its doors to non-binary clients
SurvivorsUK officially opened its doors to non-binary clients, marking a step towards a more inclusive organisation on our 30th anniversary.
2017
Clinic26 launches
Clinic26 is a safe place for men who have experienced sexual abuse, assault or rape, to access sexual health services in a supportive environment. We offer both sexual health testing and support around sexual wellbeing.
2020
SurvivorsUK works with EastEnders
SurvivorsUK works with EastEnders on a CSA storyline featuring Danny Dyer, bringing the reality of how sexual violence impacts men to millions of screens.
2021
SurvivorsUK celebrates its 35th anniversary
SurvivorsUK celebrates its 35th anniversary.
team
SurvivorsUK is in the fifth year of a 5 year strategic plan with goals that include:
Increasing counselling and therapy offering by 100% + over 5 years
Utilising technology to provide innovative and far reaching avenues of support for men who have experienced sexual abuse
Augmenting the emotional support services of the organisation to serve increasing numbers of affected men, their families, friends and carers
Developing and delivery specialised training to increasing numbers and cohorts of professionals likely to deal with sexually abused men
Campaigning and lobbying activities to increase recognition of male sexual assault victims at national and local government levels.
Below you will find our annual reports, signed accounts and our memorandum of association.
© 2023 SurvivorsUK. SurvivorsUK is a charity company limited by guarantee (Company No.3792760) | Registered Charity No. 1077484 (England & Wales)
