The Province has allocated secure, reliable funds for two sexual assault service providers in Vancouver.
B.C.’s Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General announced on July 24 that the provincial government is providing stable, annual funding for 68 sexual assault services province-wide and also implementing new policing standards on responding to sexual assaults.
The funding and new policing standards will support the needs of survivors and ensure more effective investigations.
Family Services of Greater Vancouver (FSGV) and Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre are the two Vancouver service providers that will receive the funding.
Cheryl Melder, the program director of Family, Trauma & Victims Supports at FSGV said that the stable multi-year funding offers their staff and survivors a degree of security.
"Working with the highest-risk survivors of sexualized violence reported to police, we believe in a trust-based approach to service – one that gives staff and survivors the time to build their relationship over time so that survivors can heal and find a safe path forward," Melder told V.I.A.
She stated that every person who comes forward to report sexual violence needs to know that they will be seen, heard and treated with respect and sensitivity at every point during investigation.
"As [new policing standards] are implemented across the province, we will be looking for the Ministry's oversight to ensure investigators are held to these standards."
"[FSGV] will also continue to listen to and advocate for survivors if they do not feel confident about the investigation – and take steps to secure their safety at all times," says Melder.
B.C.'s Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General will also add more new programs and supports this year, including five regional sexual assault centres that will have dedicated co-located spaces to deliver wraparound services for survivors of sexual assault.
“Sexualized violence is deeply traumatic and has devastating effects on survivors, families, and communities,” said Kelli Paddon, the Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity, in a news release.
“Too many people face gender-based violence in communities across B.C., with women, girls, and gender-diverse people being disproportionately affected.”
The total amount of funding for the service providers throughout the province is $6,663,408.
“Stable, reliable funding to support dedicated sexual assault programs, as well as these new police standards build on other life-saving work to support survivors across the province, including counselling, outreach and crisis support, and victim-service programs,” said Paddon.
The sexual assault services and the new policing standards will be guided by victim-centred, trauma-informed, inclusive, and culturally safe approaches. The services are a key component of B.C.'s action plan to address gender-based violence, which is being developed in partnership with Indigenous organizations, an advisory committee, experts, and advocates.
"All survivors deserve fair and empathetic treatment after they have experienced the trauma of sexual assault," said Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, in a news release.
Under the new policing standards, police officers will work together with victim-services workers to consider the survivor's unique needs when they first report the sexual assault.
"New policing standards and investments in sexual assault programs will empower survivors to decide how they want their case to proceed, shield them from further harm and connect them with services for a pathway to healing," said Farnworth.
"Our government is building a safer, healthier and more just province for all of us by promoting high-quality and unbiased policing and providing stable funding for crucial services that support survivors."
The funding for sexual assault services programs begins in July 2023 and the new policing standards will take effect in 2024.
