If you chose to report a rape or sexual assault to the Police, you have options about how and where you report. There is no time limit on when you can report so even if an incident happened a long time ago, you can still go to the Police.
You can phone the Police and arrange to got into a station or you can request the Police come to meet you at home or somewhere else. You can do this by contacting 999 or the non-emergency number 101. You can get support through this process from RASA.
The Police will take an initial report from you. If possible, try to be as clear and detailed as you can. If you cant remember everything, that’s ok.
If it’s a recent incident, the Police may ask you to visit your local sexual assault referral centre (SARC) to collect physical evidence within 72 hours if possible. Try to preserve evidence as best you can by not washing, brushing your teeth or changing your clothes. If you do decide to change your clothes, put the ones you were wearing in a clean plastic bag without washing them if you can. There will be a doctor and a support worker there to help you through this process. You can also visit a SARC without reporting. They are able to hold evidence up to 7 years for you. The most important thing is getting the support that is best for you.
The Police will then investigate and depending on their findings, you may then go through a process that could end up in your case going to court. If you would like more information on what happens if your case goes to Court, please email guildadvice@liverpool.ac.uk to speak to an adviser