VICTIMS of sexual offences need more support and encouragement to seek help, a women's charity has urged.

Figures published this week showed five in six victims had not reported the incidents they suffered to the police because of "embarrassment" about filing a report, and they thought the police could not help them.

Responding to the figures, Welsh Women's Aid (WWA) said reporting sexual assault could be "incredibly difficult and traumatic".

"Survivors need to have confidence in a trustworthy, transparent system when they do so," the charity told The National.

WWA said a lack of sustainable funding for support services, as well as "victim-blaming attitudes", affected women's confidence in coming forward.

The charity also said there was a "shockingly low conviction rate" for sexual offences, calling for "more accountability" for perpetrators.

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Figures opublished by the Office for National Statistics ONS this week, found that between 2017 and 2020, ony 16 per cent of people who said they had been the victim of such a crime went on to report the matter to the police.

When asked why they had decided not to report the assault, 40 per cent said they felt embarrassment. Some 34 per cent of victims said they thought doing so would be "humiliating", while a quarter of respondents said they feared they would not be believed.

The ONS figures were not limited by gender and include all victims of sexual assault, but the study also found that in all sexual offences reported in Wales and England last year, the victim was female in 84 per cent of cases.

WWA said recent vigils and demonstrations across the UK had brought "an outpouring of women sharing their experiences of violence and abuse, and the inadequate responses they have had from criminal justice system and society at large".

The long-established charity said victims need to be supported "in a safe and non-judgemental environment", regardless of whether they wanted to report a crime to the police, said 

"Someone who has been raped or sexually abused needs to know there is help and support available that will listen to them and believe them."

WWA stressed that support was available to all victims of rape or sexual abuse, even if they choose not to go to the police, and urged all victims to contact the Live Fear Free helpline on 0808 80 10 800 or webchat.

The 24-hour helpline provides year-round confidential support and can put people in touch with local specialist services.

This article originally appeared on the Argus' sister site The National.