Impact & Advocacy.
Our Impact
Break the Silence works to make a profound and positive difference in the lives of people affected by childhood sexual trauma, their partners and family members.
Through compassionate and trauma-informed support, we help promote healing, improve wellbeing and support post-traumatic growth. And the numbers speak for themselves – feedback from our clients shows they feel treated with dignity and respect, can access support in ways that meet their needs, and have experienced improvements in their confidence, wellbeing and ability to cope.
We continually strive to enhance the quality of our service, improve its outcomes, and represent lived experience. Alongside direct support, we contribute to early intervention, prevention and multi-agency partnership work, raising awareness of the effect of trauma and the importance of trauma-informed practice. In this way, our impact reaches beyond individual recovery to help shape stronger, more informed responses for survivors, families and communities.
View our Impact Reports
We are proud recipients of:
- EFQM ‘Committed to Excellence’ (2018, 2022)
- BACP Service Accreditation (2024)
- Ayrshire Chamber Business Excellence Award Winner (2024)
Client feedback (March 2026) said:
reported that Break the Silence treated them with dignity and respect.
reported that appointment scheduling was convenient.
reported that on initial contact staff were helpful, professional and responsive.
reported that Break the Silence were committed to promoting and improving overall wellbeing.
felt an increased sense of safety and trust in their counselling support.
of respondents reported that they could access the service in a way that supported their needs.
Our Advocacy
As a trusted voice and authority on childhood sexual trauma, Break the Silence advocates for survivors by representing their collective voice in key local and national fora, partnerships and strategic groups. Through carefully considered messaging, we share guidance, information and insight that helps organisations, services and decision-makers understand the realities of trauma, the standards we work to and the specialist support we provide.
Our advocacy extends beyond direct support for survivors.
We work to raise awareness of the barriers survivors face when interacting with systems such as healthcare, the legal system and wider public services, and we promote the importance of choice, confidentiality, accessibility and trauma-informed practice. We also bring our experience of therapeutic work, staff development and continuous improvement into these spaces, while exploring partnerships and opportunities around equality and access, including BSL, RNIB-related work and wider accessibility standards, so that more people can receive support in ways that feel safe, inclusive and appropriate to their needs.
- The Survivors Trust
- BACP Research Forum and the BACP Accredited Services Network
- North Ayrshire Health & Social Care Partnership Providers Forum
- The Survivors of Childhood Abuse Support (SOCAS) portfolio and network
- National Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Strategic Group - the primary multi-agency body coordinating the response to CSA in Scotland
- East Ayrshire Trauma Advisory Board
- North Ayrshire Chief Officers Group facilitated by the Ayrshire Community Trust (TACT)
- The Suicide Prevention Participation Network
Lived Experience
Break the Silence is shaped by people who understand first-hand the impact of trauma and the importance of safety, trust and choice. We have lived experience representation on our board, ensuring our work remains grounded, responsive and accountable to the people we support. Our client-led advisory group provides insight to help us understand what is useful, what could be improved and what matters most to survivors.
That lived experience matters. It helps us make decisions that reflect the realities of recovery, the complexity of trauma and the need for services that are compassionate, practical and trauma-informed. It also strengthens our understanding of how systems can feel for survivors, and what can make our support as accessible, inclusive and effective as possible.
We actively seek client views to inform service design, policy influence, and representation. This ensures survivors’ perspectives are at the forefront in driving positive change.
