Victims of rape and sexual assault

If you have been the victim of rape or have been sexually assaulted, you do not have to cope with that experience on your own. There are many people and organisations to help you, whether you want to talk about what has happened or want practical help.

Information, help and support for adult victims of rape and sexual assault

If you are an adult woman or man (over 18) and have been the victim of sexual assault nidirect has practical information and support for you, as well as your family and friends. There is guidance to help you make your own, more informed, decisions about the next steps following an assault; including information on:

health
welfare
justice matters
contact details for additional sources of help and support

The following pages explain practical issues you might need to consider after an assault, how rape and sexual assault can affect people, the law, investigating and prosecuting rape and sexual assault, the court process and details of support organisations.

Handbook for victims

The information on nidirect can also be found in a downloadable handbook. The handbook is for information purposes only and does not amount to legal advice.

Every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in the handbook is correct at the time of publication.

As it contains a lot of information, the handbook has been split into sections: