Centre for Women’s Justice to deliver first ever national Independent Legal Advice service for victim-survivors of rape and sexual violence

Centre for Women’s Justice is excited to announce that it will be leading the delivery of a new national free Independent Legal Advice service for adult victim-survivors of rape and sexual assault. We will be supported by partners Rape Crisis England and Wales and Victim Support.

The service will provide specialist, independent legal advice to victim-survivors about their rights within the criminal justice process. It will support them in relation to issues such as excessive personal data requests, Victim’s Right to Review and police investigations that fall below expected standards. The scheme is designed to help those who decide to report to the police understand their options, make informed decisions, and access clear, wholly independent legal advice at key stages of the process. While we anticipate that the overwhelming majority of service users will be women, the service will also be available to male survivors.

The first national service of its kind will be available to victim-survivors across England and Wales. It is based on a model developed and delivered by CWJ since January 2019, which was then adapted for a London-wide pilot run by Women and Girls Network and CWJ in partnership. An evaluation report, published in July 2026, praised the pilot’s trauma-informed approach and legal interventions, which improved justice outcomes and the experiences of survivors who accessed the service.

Defendants in rape cases are entitled to legal advice from the date they are arrested right though to representation at trial. In contrast, victims of rape are treated as mere witnesses in the case, which is brought by the prosecution. As such, until this scheme begins, most have had no way of obtaining legal advice or representation, making it difficult for them to challenge investigations and prosecution decisions when they need to do so. This causes additional unnecessary trauma, contributing to many survivors withdrawing from the process before trial. Although the Independent Legal Advice service cannot represent victims at court, it is intended to help address some of the problems that victim-survivors experience through the criminal justice process.

The delivery of a national Independent Legal Advice service was included in the Labour Party manifesto and forms part of the Government’s Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy. It is funded by the Ministry of Justice. It is a service CWJ has campaigned for, for many years, based on the experience of the hundreds of women we have assisted.

As CWJ’s mission is, and remains, to hold the state accountable around VAWG, we have traditionally not applied for government funding, except indirectly through the legal aid scheme. We carefully considered the implications of this new departure, but are clear that we can deliver the Independent Legal Advice service as a distinct project that will not compromise our wider mission, independence, legal judgment or willingness to hold the state to account. We will continue to do so, including through strategic litigation, policy, advice and campaigning work.

We are proud to be given the opportunity to extend the unique model we have developed with a focus on legal quality, trauma-informed practice, accessibility, confidentiality and survivor choice. We consider this an important step forward in holding the state to account and improving access to justice for survivors.

The service is expected to launch in early 2027. Further information about referral routes, eligibility and launch timings will be shared in due course.