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Highlands rape and abuse support service wins influential UK health award

PRESS RELEASE

Rape and Sexual Abuse Service Highland (RASASH), a charity based in Inverness in the Scottish Highlands, has secured one of this year’s GSK IMPACT Awards, a prestigious honour for health and care charities in the UK awarded by global biopharma company GSK in partnership with The King’s Fund.

Recent figures from the Scottish Government reports that there were 14,892 sexual crimes recorded in Scotland in 2024/25 and figures from Police Scotland show that in the same period there were 2,897 reported or attempted rapes, representing a 60% increase from 2015/16. Sexual violence can have devasting and life-long consequences for survivors such as depression and anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, suicidal ideation, eating disorders and substance misuse.

Formed in 2014, RASASH works to support people affected by rape and sexual abuse and prevent sexual violence. It is the only specialist rape and sexual abuse service in the Highlands, providing support to survivors of rape and sexual abuse who are aged 13 and over across an area where long travel times and poor transport links can make accessing help especially challenging.

Following a rigorous selection and assessment process, RASASH was chosen from a record number of award entries as one of the 10 winners of the 2026 GSK IMPACT Awards. Now in its 29th year, the awards are delivered in partnership with leading health and care charity The King’s Fund. Since its inception in 1997, more than 570 charities have received a GSK IMPACT Award. The awards are widely seen as a hallmark of excellence in the charity health sector and are designed to recognise outstanding small and medium-sized charities working to improve people’s health and wellbeing in the UK. Award winners will receive £40,000 in unrestricted funding, as well as a place on a highly coveted leadership development programme provided by The King’s Fund.

The award recognises the charity’s work providing trauma-informed support and advocacy for survivors navigating the justice system. The award judges were particularly struck by the charity’s outreach work in isolated communities and its focus on redesigning services to reduce waiting times and meet survivors’ needs quickly and safely. The charity supports those in need as well as working with local communities to prevent sexual abuse and violence.

Lisa Weaks, Senior Associate at The King’s Fund, said: 

‘Rape and Sexual Abuse Service Highland (RASASH) provides a lifeline and specialist support to thousands of people living in the Scottish Highlands who have lived through horrific experiences. It delivers its services across some of the most remote parts of the UK, making sure people can get the help they need when they need it, whilst also working to prevent and eliminate sexual violence through education and outreach projects.  It is truly deserving of this award.’

Commenting on the award, RASASH Chief Executive, Romy Rehfeld said:

‘Winning the GSK IMPACT Award is an extraordinary honour for our charity. It is a powerful recognition of our team’s dedication and the difference we are making across the Highlands. It also stands as a testament to the resilience of survivors, whose voices and courage drive our mission forward. The funding and training this award provide will make a meaningful and lasting difference to RASASH and the community we serve.’

The award comes at a time when charities are operating in a more difficult financial environment while demand for their services continues to grow.

RASASH provides free, confidential support and information to anyone affected by sexual violence across the Highlands. Alongside its frontline services, the charity delivers training and workshops in schools, youth groups and professional settings, helping to raise awareness of sexual violence and promote gender equality. Last year, its prevention work reached more than 3,400 people across 18 schools, alongside delivering the National Prevention Programme and Equally Safe interventions across the region.

RASASH’s latest figures highlight the barriers many survivors face in seeking help. Only 17% of people using the service reported the offence at the time, while 40% did not report their experiences at all. For those who do report, there is often a significant delay. In 2025, more than half of service users waited over two years before seeking support, often describing feelings of shame, fear and isolation. Many survivors also face ongoing health challenges, with 66% reporting high anxiety, 34% depression and 18% issues with drugs or alcohol. Nearly half of those referred to RASASH are also receiving support from mental health services.

RASASH plays a key role in local partnership work to tackle sexual violence, working closely with the Highland Violence Against Women Partnership, NHS Sexual Assault Referral Centre, Police Scotland and secondary schools across the Highlands.

ENDS

Notes to editors   

Photos, interviews and case studies are available upon request. For further information please contact Rowan Walker, Media and External Engagement Manager at The King’s Fund on 020 7307 2585 or r.walker@kingsfund.org.uk 

For more information about RASASH, visit: Who we are and what we do | RASASH

• The GSK IMPACT Awards, run in partnership with The King’s Fund, are designed to recognise the outstanding work of community-based health care charities. For more information visit https://www.gsk.com/en-gb/responsibility/charitable-investments/#UKInvestments 
  
• The awards are open to small and medium-sized charities working in health and wellbeing with an annual income between £150,000 and £3 million that are at least three years old. The 2027 GSK IMPACT Awards will open for applications on 1 July 2026. For more information and to apply visit www.kingsfund.org.uk/gskimpactawards.   
  
• Since its inception in 1997, more than 570 charities have received a GSK IMPACT Award and funding totalling over £9 million.    
• This year £430,000 in unrestricted prize money will be awarded to UK charities through the GSK IMPACT Awards. Five runners up will receive £4,000 each. Ten winners will each receive £40,000 in unrestricted funding, film assets, a set of promotional photographs of their services, as well as access to training and development activities estimated to be worth £13,500. The ten winning charities are also invited to join the GSK IMPACT Awards Network, a UK-wide network of almost 140 previous award winners who work together to develop leaders, find new ways of working and provide mutual support.    
•  At the award ceremony at The King’s Fund in London on 13 May 2026, an overall winner will be announced, and they will receive an additional £10,000, making a total of £50,000.
• The 2026 winners went through a rigorous assessment, including a half-day in-depth discussion with an independent assessor, and were selected by a judging panel of health and charity experts.

GSK is a global biopharma company with a purpose to unite science, technology, and talent to get ahead of disease together. Find out more at gsk.com   

The King’s Fund is an independent charity working to improve people’s health. Our vision is a world where everyone can live a healthy life. Our mission is to inspire hope and build confidence for positive change. We achieve this through expert insights and original research, developing leaders and their organisations, convening, and strategic, collaborative partnerships. For further information visit www.kingsfund.org.uk