During 2021/22 following an application submission to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) Male Rape Support Fund £32,227 was awarded for a 12-month period (1 April 2021 – 31 March 2022) to work with vulnerable young boys and men across the Cleveland area. This funding was awarded to Barnardo’s Tees Valley under DRF 2021-OPCC 000124.
The funding enabled Barnardo’s Tees Valley to support schools to get to a position where they would be responding appropriately to concerning sexual behaviours particularly from boys. The focus of the work was to minimise the escalation of concerning sexual behaviours and support teaching staff to confidently handle safeguarding incidents through a trauma informed lens.
At the same time funding was used to provide a safe environment, in which boys and young men could identify their support needs and access help. Through a combination of activities, immediate specialist support could be offered including one-to-one therapy.
This pilot was evaluated and provided some really strong learning points for the future including the need for the response to harmful sexual behaviour within the school context requiring significant further input to ensure that appropriate safeguarding and care is in place.
In August 2022, the MoJ confirmed with the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner that funding from the Male Rape Support Fund would be available in Cleveland for 2022/23. Despite the project ending in March 2022 and following discussion with Barnardo’s Tees Valley they were able to quickly mobilise the project and build on the previous pilot.
Decision 2022-0014: Male Rape Support Fund 2022/23 (application, 156kB)