Men & Boys
Did you know?
It is estimated that 155,000 males aged 16-74 experienced sexual assault in the year up to March 20001
At least 1 in 6 men have been sexually abused or assaulted2
Approximately 12,000 men (age 16-59) are raped in the UK every year3
1 Crime survey England and Wales 2021 / 2 This is based on several studies conducted between 1990 and 2005 and excludes non-contact abuse / 3 Crime survey for England and Wales 2017.
For many people, the idea that any male or a person that identifies as male can be raped or sexually abused is unthinkable, uncomfortable, and difficult to comprehend.
Culturally, society teaches men to identify themselves as being strong, powerful, in control and being able to take care of themselves.
As a result, male survivors of sexual abuse often find it difficult to speak up about what has happened to them.
When they do, they can often face a further barrier of society’s blindness to accept, acknowledge or even believe that males can be abused sexually and objectified.
Our aim as an organisation is to break down those barriers and myths, enabling males of all ages to gain the confidence to seek and receive the help and the recognition they deserve.
What to Expect
At Axis Counselling and ISVA Services, we recognise that it can be extremely difficult for males, and those who identify as male, to seek help and support following rape, sexual assault or historical sexual abuse. These traumatic experiences can evoke painful emotions such as fear, shame, guilt, anger, self- blame, humiliation and helplessness. You do not have to cope with this alone.
Both our Counselling and ISVA (Independent Sexual Violence Advisors) teams will provide support that will be tailored to meet your needs and particular circumstances. Working with Axis will give you a safe space to explore what’s troubling you. We’ll work with you to help you cope with what’s happened, with the aim of finding a way for you to move forward in your life.
Support for Males
Male sexual abuse is any unwanted or non-consensual sexual act performed against a man or boy at any time in his life. It can happen to anyone at any age.
If you are a male survivor of sexual abuse, whether this happened during your childhood or as an adult, we will help you to understand the impact of this abuse on your life today. We understand how male sexual abuse can deeply affect mental health and relationships, and well as other aspects of your life.
Some men have difficulty in admitting they have been sexually abused. It takes tremendous courage to disclose abuse to someone else. Our society encourages men to believe that they should be in control of every aspect of their lives, so when boys or men are abused, they often think they should have been able to stop their abusers. As adults, men often blame themselves for having allowed the offender to have control over them. The blame for abuse always lies entirely with the abuser. We will work with you to help you to place the blame where it should be.
Often myths around male sexual abuse can drive some of these feelings and be unhelpful. For more information, please visit our page on myths.
ISVA Service
Our advisors will respect your wishes and give you impartial advice and guidance, so you have the most appropriate support as well as all the relevant information to make an informed choice which is absolutely right for you.
Our ISVA team are all highly trained and knowledgeable in all aspect of providing practical support, advice, advocacy, criminal justice guidance, and practical assistance to victims of sexual assault and abuse. Whether you decide to pursue any matters through the courts or not they are here to help you.
We will complete an assessment of your needs with you so that we can tailor the support we provide to meet your individual needs. This will include agreeing together how support will work best for you, such as through face-to-face meetings, over the telephone or other ways such as texts and emails. This assessment is continually reviewed and can be updated should circumstances or your wishes change.
Axis ISVAs support men, women and children from the age of 5 upwards who have experienced any form of sexual abuse or rape. Our Family ISVA supports the parents, siblings, partners or sometimes other family members.
We provide a choice of gender for the ISVA or Counsellor who will work with you.
This service is free to residents of Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin.
Last year* the ISVA service supported 104 men and boys aged 5 and above (9% of all ISVA clients supported).
For more information on how our ISVAs can help you please download a copy of our ISVA Leaflet. It is currently available in English, Polish, Punjabi and Urdu.
Please also visit our ISVA page.
*1st April 2022 – 31st March 2023
Counselling
Our Counsellors provide support to men, women, young people and children (aged 5 upwards) who have experienced non-recent (historic) childhood sexual abuse; any form of sexual assault, sexual violence, sexual exploitation or rape.
They will deliver a planned programme of counselling sessions that will help you understand more about your own situation, how and why this is impacting on your life and give you the tools to be better able to cope.
Axis can also signpost you to other appropriate agencies that can help you with a range of other aspects that may also be affecting you.
Last year* the Counselling Service supported 115 men and boys (13% of all Counselling clients supported)
In the last year1 95% of males leaving our counselling service showed a decrease in levels of depression.
In the same period 74% of males leaving service showed a decrease in levels of anxiety.
For more information on how our Counsellors can help you please download a copy of our Counselling leaflet.
Please also visit our Counselling page.
*1st April 2022 – 31st March 2023
Feedback
“The advice and support I have received has been amazing”
“I would not be here today if not for this service. It quite literally changed my life”
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