Hundreds of women and girls could face long waits for specialist support following rape or sexual violence unless funding increases, a new report has warned.
The Scottish Rape Crisis Alliance includes Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis, which provides support across Renfrewshire.
Its report, No time for delay: A call for urgent action for survivors of rape and sexual violence, says demand is increasing while services face funding pressures.
Modelling by the alliance shows that, from April 2028, at least 683 women and girls could be waiting for emotional and therapeutic support.
Up to 1,410 could also be waiting for specialist advocacy support through police, medical and justice processes.
The alliance said at least 2,275 women and girls could require emotional and therapeutic support. Current funding would allow its four member services to support no more than 1,592.
Up to 3,300 women could require advocacy support, while services would have capacity to support around 1,980.
The report comes as Scottish Government figures show police recorded 16,430 sexual crimes during 2025-26. This was the highest figure since comparable records began in 1971.
Rape and attempted rape increased by 11% in the past year and by 72% over the last decade, reaching 3,229 offences.
Of the 2,897 recent rape and attempted rape offences where the victim’s sex could be determined, 95% involved female victims.
An estimated 4,410 sexual crimes had a cyber element, accounting for 27% of all recorded sexual crimes. At least 1,420 involved someone aged under 18.
The alliance said it costs an average of £291 to support a survivor through its services.
It is calling for an additional £875,000 from the Scottish Government to prevent waiting lists from growing by April 2028.
Liz Curran, who leads the work of the Scottish Rape Crisis Alliance, said: “A woman or girl who has been raped should not have to ask for help, only to be told to wait months for specialist support. It is a badge of shame on our society that we continue to retraumatise survivors through inadequate services.
“It is heartbreaking to tell a survivor that, after the trauma of sexual violence, she must wait months for the help she needs to recover and navigate what has happened.
“But it need not be this way. Scotland has the expertise and specialist services to support survivors. What frontline services lack is the capacity, investment and support from our politicians to meet growing demand.
“If Scotland is serious about ending violence against women and girls, it must be serious about supporting those who survive it. We need action now before projected waiting lists become reality.”
The alliance is calling for sustained funding for specialist rape crisis services and more capacity for emotional, therapeutic and advocacy support.
It also wants the Scottish Government to implement the Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of Violence Against Women and Girls services.
The Scottish Rape Crisis Alliance brings together Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis, Lanarkshire Rape Crisis Centre, The STAR Centre – Rape Crisis Ayrshire and Western Isles Rape Crisis Centre.
The four centres supported more than 4,300 women and girls during the latest annual reporting period.