JK Rowling funds women-only rape help centre in Edinburgh

JK Rowling has launched a caller women-only enactment work for victims of intersexual violence.

The writer says Beira's Place volition supply escaped enactment and advocacy for women successful Edinburgh who person experienced maltreatment astatine immoderate clip successful their lives.

She said the work would conscionable an "unmet need" successful effect to demands from pistillate survivors of abuse.

Ms Rowling said it was important that survivors had the enactment of women-centred and women-delivered care.

Rape Crisis Scotland said enactment should besides beryllium disposable to trans and non-binary people.

The Harry Potter creator has held a longstanding involvement successful women's and children's issues and has been a vocal professional of the Scottish government's reform of the Gender Recognition Act.

Other critics of the betterment are among those connected the committee of directors for Beira's Place.

As good arsenic Ms Rowling, they see erstwhile situation politician Rhona Hotchkiss, erstwhile Scottish Labour person Johann Lamont, GP Margaret McCartney, and manager of For Women Scotland, Susan Smith.

The caller task is being funded by the author, who lives successful Edinburgh. It is not a foundation and volition not trust connected donations.

Ms Rowling said: "I founded Beira's Place to supply what I judge is presently an unmet request for women successful the Lothians area.

"As a subsister of intersexual battle myself, I cognize however important it is that survivors person the enactment of women-centred and women-delivered attraction astatine specified a susceptible time.

"Beira's Place volition connection an summation successful capableness for services successful the country and will, I hope, alteration much women to process and retrieve from their trauma."

Named aft Beira, the Scottish goddess of winter, it volition beryllium tally by a paid unit of experienced enactment workers and headed by main enforcement Isabelle Kerr and lawman main enforcement Susan Domminney.

They antecedently ran the Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis.

Ms Kerr said: "Violence against women and girls is an contented that crosses each cultures, classes, and religions.

"These are gendered crimes that are overwhelmingly perpetrated by men and disproportionately experienced by women.

"Beira's Place recognises that effectual intersexual unit services indispensable beryllium independent, needs-led, and supply responsive, women-centred services truthful that they are escaped from the unit of existent governmental agendas.

"We are committed to ensuring that our work is free, confidential, and accessible to women survivors who whitethorn request it."

The constitution of Beira's Place comes 2 months aft Ms Rowling supported a rally protesting against the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill.

She wore a T-shirt calling First Minister Nicola Sturgeon a "destroyer of women's rights".

The projected caller instrumentality volition marque it easier for radical successful Scotland to alteration their legally recognised gender, and is owed its last ballot astatine Holyrood adjacent week.

It volition region the request for a aesculapian diagnosis of sex dysphoria arsenic a information of acquiring a sex designation certificate.

Critics person raised concerns astir the interaction it could person connected azygous enactment spaces specified arsenic women's refuges and prisons.

The Scottish authorities has denied this, saying it volition streamline a process which is presently invasive and distressing for an already marginalised group.

Rape Crisis Scotland - which has 17 centres crossed Scotland - said it welcomed immoderate caller work to enactment survivors of intersexual violence.

It added: "It is important that the life-saving enactment offered by rape situation centres is disposable to trans and non-binary people.

"All rape situation services successful Scotland connection enactment to trans women and person done truthful for 15 years. There has not been a azygous incidental of anyone abusing this.

"We proceed to spot the paths to equality for women and trans radical are being profoundly interconnected and babelike connected shared efforts to dismantle systems of discrimination."

Writer Suzanne Moore, who interviewed JK Rowling connected the opening of Beira's Place, told BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour it was a large undertaking for the author.

"A task similar this is years successful the making," she said. "She has gathered a squad of experts, radical who person worked successful rape situation centres and what she truly wants to guarantee is this is not a foundation that is taxable to the whims of powerfulness and that its backing is ne'er nether threat.

"It's truly elemental and successful immoderate ways it has not got a batch to bash with the full trans contented and the analyzable authorities of Scotland. JK is doing thing to amended the lives of immoderate of the astir susceptible people."