"Closing Our Doors": Domestic Abuse Charities Warn Government Over Funding Crisis
Five of the UK's leading victims' and women's charities have written directly to the Prime Minister to warn that funding cuts and soaring employment costs are pushing services to the edge of collapse, and that the government's own pledge to halve violence against women and girls is now "in jeopardy."
A coalition of the UK's most prominent domestic abuse and sexual violence charities has issued a stark warning to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer: act now, or survivors of abuse will be turned away.
The joint letter, signed by the chief executives of Rape Crisis England and Wales, Victim Support, Welsh Women's Aid, Imkaan and Women's Aid Federation of England, warns that a combination of cuts to Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) budgets and the increase in employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) has left their organisations staring down a collective shortfall running into "many millions of pounds."
Victim Support estimates it alone faces a 7% real-terms funding cut once the unexpected rise in employer National Insurance is factored in, equivalent to approximately 3.5 million pounds, or the loss of 84 employees. For an organisation that acts as one of the first points of contact for crime victims across England and Wales, that is not an abstract figure. It translates directly to fewer advisers answering phones, fewer survivors getting through.
"There Is Simply Nowhere Left to Cut"
The charities are not raising alarm as a precaution. Many are already operating with depleted reserves after years of rising costs and flat or declining grants. The NIC increase, which raised the employer rate to 15% while lowering the threshold at which contributions begin, has landed at the worst possible moment.
"The news of a National Insurance increase with no exemption or mitigation for charities is a hammer blow to services who have already cut costs wherever they could to continue through a cost-of-living crisis. There is simply nowhere left to cut." - Sara Kirkpatrick, Chief Executive, Welsh Women's Aid
A third of Rape Crisis centre managers and directors are expecting to issue redundancy notices before the end of the financial year, with 30% of directors concerned they may have to close their centre entirely. These are not fringe organisations. Rape Crisis centres often serve as the only specialist support available to survivors in their local area, particularly in rural communities where statutory services are stretched thin.
Demand for support is higher than ever, with 88% of Welsh Women's Aid members reporting increased demand alongside challenges from short-term and inadequate funding. Almost half of organisations surveyed for Women's Aid Federation of England's Annual Audit had been forced to run an area of their service without any dedicated funding at all.
A Mission the Government Cannot Afford to Abandon
The government's stated ambition is to halve violence against women and girls within a decade. It is one of the most high-profile pledges made by the Labour administration since taking office. But the charities argue that ambition and action are pulling in opposite directions.
Offences related to violence against women currently account for 20% of all police recorded crime, and the charities say support for survivors is needed now more than ever.
"Our vital support services are needed now more than ever, so by cutting funding and raising national insurance, this government is putting their future in danger and potentially denying a lifeline to hundreds of thousands of women and girls." - Joint letter to the Prime Minister
The government has not been entirely inactive. In December 2025, it announced over one billion pounds for domestic abuse victims, including more than 550 million pounds over three years to strengthen specialist services helping survivors navigate the justice process. A further uplift was announced for the Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation Grant, intended to help local authorities fund refuges and safe housing.
But charity leaders insist that headline figures mask the reality on the ground. Ring-fenced funding streams have repeatedly failed to keep pace with inflation. The Ministry of Justice's Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Fund, described as the only ring-fenced government funding stream for these services, had not been increased in line with inflation and was not guaranteed beyond March 2026. With the Spending Review now complete, serious concerns remain that victim services will again be left underfunded, fears reinforced by Treasury language suggesting the Ministry of Justice should "investigate efficiency opportunities" in victims' services.
The Human Cost of Cutting Corners
Behind the financial figures are individual stories that never make it into Treasury documents. Women who finally summon the courage to leave an abusive partner and find a helpline unmanned. Rape survivors who wait months for a counselling appointment that never comes. Children who grow up in households where abuse is never challenged because the local service closed.
With faith in police at rock bottom and court delays at record levels, specialist charity services have become the primary lifeline for hundreds of thousands of women, helping them escape dangerous relationships, access critical advice on domestic abuse and sexual violence, and remain supported through a lengthy and often traumatic court process.
"Domestic abuse is a national emergency, and yet our network of lifesaving services across the country is at risk of dismantling due to decades of underfunding and rising costs." - Isabell Younane, Head of External Affairs, Women's Aid Federation of England
Katie Kempen, Chief Executive of Victim Support, was direct in her assessment. She said closing the doors to vulnerable victims of crime is the last thing her organisation wants to do, but that they could be left with no choice, and urged the Prime Minister to immediately reverse planned cuts and increase the victims' services grant to cover National Insurance rises.
What the Charities Are Asking For
The demands in the joint letter are specific and immediate. The five organisations are calling for a funding uplift sufficient to cover the increase in National Insurance costs, an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister, and a commitment to place victims' services on a secure and sustainable financial footing going forward.
They are also pushing for longer-term funding agreements. Government guidance has acknowledged the difficulties providers face when given short-term funding, and has stated an aim to provide longer-term grant agreements to improve certainty and enable recipients to plan, but that commitment has yet to translate into practice for many organisations on the front line.
The charities have also pointed to a structural inequality at the heart of the problem. Unlike private businesses, they cannot raise prices to offset higher costs. Unlike public sector bodies, they were not exempt from the NIC increase. As the Chair of the Charity Tax Group noted, there are very limited opportunities to pass on these additional costs, leaving organisations with nowhere to turn but their own reserves, which are already depleted.
What Happens Next
The government is expected to publish its new Violence Against Women and Girls strategy in the coming months. For the charities who signed the letter, that document will be the test. Words of commitment are no longer enough.
Rape Crisis England and Wales CEO Ciara Bergman warned that without additional support, services will be left with little choice but to lose staff, close waiting lists and, in some cases, shut down altogether.
The government has said it is working through funding details for the Spending Review period running through to 2029. For the women and children turning to these services today, that timeline may already be too long.
"Every year, Rape Crisis centres support thousands of adult and child survivors of rape and sexual abuse to rebuild their lives and persevere through a justice system which is abjectly failing them. Without support, the few who do seek criminal justice would simply give up." - Ciara Bergman, Chief Executive, Rape Crisis England and Wales
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, contact the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247, available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In an emergency, always call 999.
