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A safe and supportive sexual assault service for women in Edinburgh

These resources have been created for survivors of sexual violence, abuse or sexual exploitation but may also be useful for anyone who is supporting a survivor.

Why “Beira’s Place”?

Beira [pronounced By-ra] is the Scottish goddess of winter. She rules over the dark part of the year, handing over to her sister, Bride, when summer comes again. Beira represents female wisdom, power and regeneration. Hers is a strength that endures during the difficult times, but her myth contains the promise that they will not last forever.

Beira’s Place is women’s sexual violence support project based in Edinburgh, covering the whole Lothian region.

We deliver a confidential trauma informed service to women survivors of sexual abuse from aged 16 years, no matter when that sexual violence or abuse has happened in their lives.

We support women who have experienced any of the following, at any time in their lives:

  • Rape
  • Sexual assault
  • Stalking
  • Sexual harassment
  • Intimate partner sexual violence
  • Commercial Sexual Exploitation (including the exchange of sex)
  • Childhood sexual abuse
  • Online sexual abuse, image based sexual abuse, or ‘revenge porn’
  • Sexual abuse in prostitution
  • Sexual coercion and control

Download our information leaflet

Find out more about Beira’s Place support service for women aged 16+ who have experienced any kind of sexual violence, sexual abuse or sexual exploitation, no matter when it occurred.

Download Leaflet

This leaflet is also available in Arabic, Mandarin, Ukrainian and Polish.

About Us

Beira’s Place staff are a highly trained team of practitioners,offering a trauma informed support service which is unique in Edinburgh and the Lothians.

The service is a single-sex, women-only environment for staff and service users alike. All our staff have extensive expertise in supporting women survivors of all forms of violence, abuse, and exploitation.

We offer person-centred approach using counselling skills, and tailoring support and advice to each woman according to her individual needs.

Beira’s Place has been set up in response to evidence that many female survivors prefer a women-only service to safely address and recover from their trauma.

Beira’s Place is a women-only service, which means that any contact you have with us, will be from a woman and you can be guaranteed that when you visit our city centre venue, everyone in the building will be women.

Our new outreach services are discreetly co-located within well-established community health initiatives across Edinburgh and retain our women-only ethos with private and confidential support offered in quiet parts of the building separate from other service users, which however, cannot be guaranteed as women-only spaces. All survivors will be offered a choice of venue to suit their needs and well-being.

Workers at Beira’s Place and the Board of Directors all have a long history and commitment to supporting survivors and women impacted by abuse. Any woman seeking support is assured that all decisions about the running of the centre have been made by women, including those with a history of delivering direct services and listening to the voices of women.

Our support staff have many years’ experiences working with women’s organisations and come from a background in supporting women and girls who have experienced sexual violence, domestic abuse, addiction, mental health and other forms of vulnerability.. Our staff also have experience in supporting women abused in prostitution and other forms of sexual exploitation and harassment.

Our Values

Beira’s Place is committed to challenging misogynistic and patriarchal power structures that, through the abuse of, and threatened abuse of women and girls, prevents many from reaching their full potential.

We recognise that responsibility for any act of violence against women and girls lies with the perpetrator: it can never be excused, justified, or explained away and there is no context within which it is acceptable or valid.

Beira’s Place recognises that effective sexual violence and abuse services must be survivor and needs led, providing flexible and responsive woman centred services to support the recovery and healing process. The support is free, confidential and accessible to female survivors.

We understand that as well as being women, factors such as race, disability, sexual orientation, class, ethnicity, religious belief, and experience of previous trauma, can affect and compound women’s experience of sexual violence.

Beira’s Place understands that from the early days of women led support services for survivors of male violence, single sex services have been at the forefront of developing innovative ways of working with survivors through their healing journey. We are committed to continuing and expanding this work to respond to the stated needs of survivors.

Beira’s Place aims to challenge the myths surrounding sexual violence and abuse by promoting the understanding that all forms of sexual violence are acts of power and control and are preventable.

Beira’s Place also understands that all forms of commercial sexual exploitation constitute abuse of women and girls and support the Nordic Model approach which “decriminalises all those who are prostituted, provides support services to help them exit, and makes buying people for sex a criminal offence, in order to reduce the demand that drives sex trafficking.”[1]

  1. Nordic Model Now – What is the Nordic Model? – Nordic Model Now! (May 2022)

Our Staff

  • Lesley Johnston

    Chief Executive Officer

    Lesley joined our staff team in December 2024, bringing a wealth of experience and knowledge in Gender Based Violence from a wide range of sectors over many decades. As well as having direct practitioner and case management skills, Lesley has held a range of project management and managerial positions within the NHS, university sector, local and national government and key third sector agencies – including within Women’s Aid and violence against women services.

    As an accredited national GBV Trainer, Lesley has delivered several trauma informed training packages at a national and international level and has published a number of articles and resources on GBV as well as co-writing and delivering GBV Training Modules to multi-agency services, including the Police; NHS staff, university & third sector, and local authority workers. Lesley brings a range of partnership skills to this CEO role and is current Vice Chair of the Edinburgh based Violence Against Women Partnership, contributing directly to the further integration and expansion of Beira’s Place as a key strategic partner and service provider to both tackle and support those impacted by forms of violence and abuse against women and girls.

    Lesley completed her under and postgraduate degrees in Criminology & Social Policy & Community Education at Edinburgh University and has completed further managerial & GBV training courses and qualifications.

  • Marion Blackwood

    Deputy Chief Executive Officer

    Marion Blackwood has recently taken up post with us after holding a number of high level legal and managerial posts, including running her own Family Law Practice, supporting many complex domestic and sexual abuse cases. Marion has a long-standing interest and commitment in working on women’s issues and ensuring that vulnerable and abused women access support and solution-focussed interventions.

    Marion is a highly skilled and dedicated professional with expertise in legal, financial, human resources and operational management in both the private and public sectors, which, coupled with her knowledge and understanding of violence against women, will be a great asset to our organisation as we continue to develop and expand our service provision and provide evidence based and trauma informed support services to women impacted by sexual and other forms of abuse.

    Marion is dual-qualified in English and Scots Law and has a postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice. She has also completed a wide range of Continuing Professional Development Courses on Psychological Trauma, Managing Workplace Stress, Consent & Confidentiality, Child Protection & Safeguarding and Defining Leadership and Management, and has also been involved in initiating many risk management and governance initiatives.

“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive: and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humour, and some style.”

― Maya Angelou

Our Board of Directors

  • J.K. Rowling

    JK Rowling is an author, campaigner, and philanthropist with a longstanding interest in supporting women’s and children’s issues. As a survivor of domestic violence and sexual assault, she understands the critical importance of female-centred, female-delivered support for women seeking to rebuild their lives after sexual trauma. JK Rowling is the founder and funder of Beira’s Place.

  • Rhona Hotchkiss

    Rhona was a nurse and advisor at Scottish Government and then a Prison Governor. She has worked with and campaigned on issues affecting women & LGB people all of her adult life.

  • Johann Lamont

    Johann Lamont is a former teacher who is still passionate about education. She is a former Labour and Cooperative MSP and has been a lifelong campaigner for equality and justice, and for the rights of women and girls.

  • Susan Smith

    Susan is a co-director of For Women Scotland, the largest grassroots women’s organisation in Scotland set up to strengthen and protect women’s rights. She has served on the boards and committees of various children’s charities and organisations and has a background in finance.

  • Dr Margaret McCartney

    Dr Margaret McCartney is a GP, academic, freelance writer, and broadcaster.

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