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Rape and sexual assault‎: taskforce to improve services for victims

Overview

The full official title of this taskforce is: the Taskforce for the improvement of services for adults and children who have experienced rape and sexual assault. It considers services for both adults and children.

On 30 March 2017 the Scottish Government announced that the Chief Medical Officer would lead an expert group to consider what improvements were required for healthcare and forensic medical services for those who have experienced rape and sexual assault. The Taskforce had its inaugural meeting on 27 April 2017 in Edinburgh. Meetings take place quarterly thereafter.

The Taskforce provides the necessary leadership so that Health Boards commit to providing these services to better meet the needs of victims.

Specifically, the Taskforce intends to:

  • drive improvements in the provision of healthcare and forensic medical services for victims of sexual assault
  • provide the necessary leadership so that Health Boards commit to deliver trauma informed services to better meet the needs of victims
  • reduce unnecessary delays
  • address situations where victims have to travel unreasonable distances to be examined
  • tackle issues around the availability of female doctors to contribute to the delivery of these services
  • consider the HMICS report, HMICS Strategic Overview of Provision of Forensic Medical Services to Victims of Sexual Crime 2017, on current arrangements for forensic medical examinations in sexual offences cases in Scotland, including the recommendations about consistency in the standards of care and support for victims
  • ensure that NHS Boards are meeting the National Standards developed by Healthcare Improvement Scotland

Minutes of each meeting are published after they are formally agreed by the membership. You can find these below under documents.

The Taskforce have identified initial priority areas for work under the following headings:

  • workforce and training
  • delivery and performance
  • clinical pathways
  • quality improvement
  • legislation

Chairs for sub-groups are appointed and have set remits and priorities for their sub-groups and will report directly to the Taskforce.

Rape Crisis Scotland will lead on ensuring that the Taskforce learn from lived experience which will inform its work plan.

The Chief Medical Officer published the Taskforce's high level work plan October 2017 which communicates how work will be driven forward.

Scottish Ministers will receive regular progress reports.

Members

Name Role Organisation
Dr Catherine Calderwood Chief Medical Officer for Scotland (Chair) Scottish Government
Diane Murray Associate Chief Nursing Officer Scottish Government
Anne Marie Hicks National Procurator Fiscal Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service
Anne Neilson Director of Public Protection NHS Lothian  
Prof. Alan Denison Post Graduate Dean, North of Scotland Region                                                                    NHS Education Scotland
Beth Macmaster Lead, Children and Gender Based Violence Justice Scottish Government

Boyd Peters

Board Medical Director

NHS Highland

Carol Rogers

Lead Forensic Scientist, Sexual Offences

Scottish Police Authority

Colin Sloey (Subgroup Chair) 

Taskforce Co-ordinator

Scottish Government

Duncan Alcock (Subgroup Chair)

Associate Medical Director

NHS The State Hospital

Edward Doyle (Subgroup Chair)

Senior Medical Advisor Paediatrics

Scottish Government

Dr Fiona Wardell

Standards and Indicators Lead

NHS Health Improvement Scotland

Gary Jenkins

Chief Executive

NHS The State Hospital

Gerald Mclaughlin

Chief Executive

NHS Health Scotland

Greig Walker (Subgroup Chair)

Bill Team leader, Forensic Medical Services (Victims of Sexual Offences) (Scotland) Bill

Scottish Government
Iona Colvin Chief Social Work Adviser Scottish Government
Karen Ritchie Deputy Director of Evidence Healthcare Improvement Scotland

Katie Brown

Equally Safe Policy Co-ordinator

COSLA
Katie Cosgrove Gender Based Violence Programme Lead NHS Health Scotland
Sandy Brindley National Co-ordinator Rape Crisis Scotland
Tom Nelson Director of Forensic Services Scottish Police Authority
Detective Chief Superintendent Lesley Boal Head of Public Protection Police Scotland

Lesley Swanson

Team Leader, Child Protection

Scottish Government
Dr Lindsay Thomson Medical Director State Hospitals Board for Scotland
Dr Louise Wilson Director of Public Health NHS Orkney

Martin Morrison (Subgroup Chair)

Associate Director, Practitioner & Counter Fraud Services

NHS National Service Scotland

Sybil Canavan (Subgroup Chair)

Associate Director of Workforce

NHS Healthcare Improvement Scotland

Tricia Marwick

Representative of NHS Board Chairs

NHS Fife

1 Taskforce members may nominate a deputy if they are unable to attend.
2 Subgroup membership may extend to experts/professionals who are not members of the Taskforce. Sub-group Chair names are in bold.

Scottish Government supporting officials

Tansy Main, Head of CMO Rape and Sexual Assault Taskforce Unit
Vicky Carmichael, Deputy Head of CMO Rape and Sexual Assault Taskforce Unit
Michelle Harrity, CMO Taskforce
Mark Burgess, CMO Taskforce
Adam Bircham, CMO Taskforce Secretariat
Jenny Clifton Coles, CMO Taskforce Secretariat
Jane Russell, administrative support to CMO Taskforce Secretariat

Related information

Documents

Policies

Contact

Tansy Main: tansy.main@gov.scot