I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, something I carried alone for many years. When I finally spoke up, I went through the investigation process — not for myself, but to try and stop this happening to someone else. 

What followed was not just difficult. It was traumatising in its own right. The process didn’t just revisit the trauma — it amplified it.

I was asked to retell and explain something I had spent years trying to survive. I had to go over it again and again, questioned on every single detail, constantly feeling like I had to prove myself, prove my story, prove my truth. I was expected to explain something deeply traumatic in a clear, consistent, and chronological way. But trauma does not work like that.

A few weeks ago, that investigation was closed. There was no accountability. No consequence. No justice.

And when that happened, it didn’t just feel like the case ended. It felt like I wasn’t believed. Like it was my fault — for not remembering things in the right order, not using the right words, or not speaking up sooner.

It is hard to explain how much that stays with you — to go through something like that, to speak up, to try, and then to feel like it still wasn’t enough.

What became clear to me through this process is how often trauma is still misunderstood within the justice system.

A significant number of survivors withdraw from the process before a case reaches a conclusion, most often due to the emotional toll or the length of the process. Research has also shown that 3 out of 4 survivors are subjected to rape myths in court, including being questioned about clothing, behaviour, or their response.

Research shows that traumatic memories are often fragmented, non-linear, and incomplete. They may be recalled out of order, in pieces, or with gaps. Survivors may also experience delayed recall, sometimes years after the event.

These are well-documented and normal responses to trauma — not signs of dishonesty or unreliability.

Yet survivors are still expected to present clear, consistent, and immediate accounts — or risk not being believed.

The wider reality is both deeply shocking and concerning:

Around 900,000 sexual offences occur each year in England and Wales. The majority are never reported to police. Of those reported, only around 2–4% result in a charge, and only around 1–2% of reported rape cases result in a charge or conviction.

This means the vast majority of cases never reach justice.

Without trauma-informed understanding, there is a real risk that survivors are misinterpreted or disbelieved — directly impacting case outcomes and contributing to cases being dismissed.

This is not just about individual experiences. It is about a system that is still not equipped to understand trauma.

That is why I am calling for mandatory trauma-informed training for juries and legal professionals in sexual offence cases.

Speaking about this now is terrifying.

But what feels even more terrifying is knowing the system continues to fail survivors in the way it does, and those responsible for these offences are walking free, facing no consequences.

This has to change.

Sign this. Share this. And be part of the reason it does.