THE Rape Crisis Centre has said the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) should meet the victims of clerical abuse in Cloyne to discuss his decision not to seek prosecution against the alleged serial paedophile in the 2008 Cloyne report.

A RAPE crisis charity has issued a set of tips which they hope can help prevent the upsurge of sexual assaults linked to better weather and outdoor events.

A SURGE of 45% in first-time callers to rape crisis support services last year was triggered by the release of two damning abuse reports.

BARNARDOS, the children’s charity, has had to close some of its waiting lists to new referrals until after Christmas because of pressure on services.

Were it not for their dedication and commitment to children, matched only by the anger and frustration of the voluntary organisations at the coalface of child protection in Ireland, the Ryan report might well be consigned to a convenient shelf where it would quietly gather dust.

FUNDING which was to be made available to counselling services for victims of sexual abuse in the aftermath of the Ryan Report has still not been allocated to support groups one year on from the damning report, it has emerged.

If Government promises were enough to resolve our problems, we would probably have no problems, because the current Government has never been short on promises.

RAPE crisis groups have called on people upset by the release of Larry Murphy to get help if they need it.

THE number of rape cases making it to court dropped by over a third last year because a growing number of victims are intimidated by the legal process, say rape crisis experts.

VICTIMS of physical violence and “emotional distress” — such as harassment and stalking — are legally entitled to give a victim impact statement in court.

I’VE written a few columns recently about the things that don’t work in our health system.

The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre has called for media guidelines on the discussion of sexual assault following controversial comments by Newstalk presenter George Hook last week.

The head of a victims’ support charity has called for guidelines on how the media cover the issue of rape.

The Justice Minister has said there needs to be a zero-tolerance approach to sexual assault.

Sexual assaults are becoming more violent, according to the Chair of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.

The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre has criticised the leniency of the sentence handed down to Tom Humphries.

There are growing calls for a Government-funded study on the extent of sexual violence in Ireland.

"The damage that is done in sexually exploiting a child can be lifelong."

Transition Year students will be given classes on sexual consent under a new scheme.

Yes, 2017 was one weird year but there were some wonderful moments too from Serena Williams’ pregnancy to the election as Taoiseach of a gay man and son of an immigrant, writes Clodagh Finn