Frequently Asked Questions

If you are not sure whether you are eligible for our service, please get in touch with us by phone on 0131 526 3944, email us on support@beirasplace.org.uk or text us on 07546 697 067.

We understand it can be difficult to attend appointments when you have small children or other caring responsibilities it’s best to try to make childcare or other arrangements if possible.

Childcare is often difficult to get and can be expensive, and we may be able to help in some way. We can also discuss arranging appointment times that are flexible and fit with school/nursery hours or look at other ways of offering support.

Any woman who needs childcare for her appointment times should contact us and we can discuss some of the options in more detail.

Beira’s Place is women only, so if there is a man accompanying you, we regret will be unable to allow him access to our women-only building.

A woman companion may be able to wait inside but this is dependent on what services are running at that time and if there are any free rooms. Please let us know if this is a concern. There are cafes, libraries and galleries a short walk away.

Anyone who has suffered trauma can be faced with days where they feel they’re just not well enough, physically or mentally, to leave the house and make it to an appointment, particularly if there may be some painful issues to discuss.

Before you start any sessions with a support worker here, you will be invited to an initial assessment to help you decide if this service best meets your needs. This can be a good time to talk about the times when you find it difficult to go out or speak to anyone and we can discuss flexible appointment times with you, or possibly combining the support you get so that it can be face to face when you are feeling well enough, or by phone or online if you don’t feel like going out on your own.

Beira’s Place is housed in the New Town in Edinburgh city centre. It’s a listed building and unfortunately, we are very restricted in what we can do to alter its layout.

For anyone who is a wheelchair user, we will be making alternative arrangements for the support to take place in a fully accessible building that is still in the city centre and close to transport links.

If you have limited mobility but can manage the few steps up to the front door of the building, there is a ground floor support room and accessible toilet that we can use for the support sessions which is suited to your needs.

Phone and online support can also be available and if travelling into the city becomes too much, the method of support can be changed to one that is better suited to your own needs.

We understand that getting into Edinburgh city centre might be difficult, particularly for women who have limited mobility, time restrictions, anxiety about travelling, are working or have caring responsibilities. Travel can also be expensive, and many people are having difficulties with the rising cost of living.

If the cost of transport is the main problem, we may be able to help (see above).

If travelling is the problem, we can offer telephone support or online support if it suits better.

We plan to offer outreach services in both the north and south of the city from Spring 2025 and we can discuss these options with you following your initial referral. When calling us or at the assessment appointment, please ask the support worker about help with travel.

No, support services at Beira’s Place are always provided free of charge, regardless of your financial situation, and you may also be eligible for additional support to help you access our support services (see above).

This woman only service is offered in accordance with the Equality Act 2010 which permits the provision of single sex services for women in various situations where there is a good reason for them.

From our years of experience working with women and girls who are survivors of sexual violence, abuse, and sexual exploitation, and from service users feedback, we know that most women prefer to use a woman only service when accessing support for the sexual violence trauma they have experienced. There are several services across the Lothians that provide sexual violence support to women and men and contact details for them can be found in our ‘Useful Links’ information sheet.

Beira’s Place is run by women for women and is led by our women-only board of directors. The building itself is ‘women only’ during its opening hours so that women can be assured they can feel safe within a female only environment. The new Outreach Services will be based in local community health venues, and will still be offered to, and delivered by women only. The venues however, will not be entirely women only, although we have ensured that your support sessions will be held in a quiet and confidential private room, with limited exposure to other people using the building.

Beira’s Place is a support service for women who have experienced any form of sexual violence, sexual abuse, or sexual exploitation at any time in their lives. This can include both historical and/or more recent forms of sexual abuse, including abuse perpetrated by a partner/ex-partner.

We offer a range of support services from online support, telephone support, face to face support and survivor support groups as well as survivor wellbeing sessions and events.

We will recommend a programme of support that can meet your own specific needs depending on the trauma you have experienced. Programmes are always created and reviewed with the woman herself so you can be sure that you will be comfortable and confident in the support you are offered. All service users are encouraged to give us (confidential) feedback on their support, as well as suggestions for improvement in our services.

You can make your first contact us in several ways.

• You can phone our office on 0131 526 3944 to make an appointment for an initial assessment. Whilst we are not a “crisis service”, our staff can help signpost you to access emergency support if required.
• You can text us on 07546 697 067 and we will call you back or text you, whichever you prefer. If you are texting us, please let us know you name and if you would prefer a phone call back or a text, when it’s safe to phone and if we can say who we are when we call or text you.
• You can email us on support@beirasplace.org.uk

Unfortunately, we do not have a drop-in service available so can only offer scheduled appointments. However, we can offer face to face, phone or online appointments depending on what you prefer and every effort is made to keep our waiting times to a minimum.