Concerns over self-swab 'rape kits' given to students

Rape support groups have expressed serious concerns” over self-swab rape kits” being marketed towards university students in the UK.

- ATHENA STAVROU

The kits allow people who have been sexually assaulted or raped to take a swab themselves and send it off to a lab to be tested for the DNA of the alleged perpetrator. Half the sample is frozen and can be kept for up to 20 years and handed to the police if the incident is later reported.

Such kits have been handed out to students on UK university campuses in recent months, with companies saying the kits act as a deterrent and provide a simpler way to report a rape.

However, Rape Crisis England and Wales has warned that although the kits might seem like a good idea, there are concerns about how they work.

It warned survivors that the kits may not be able to collect the evidence needed to prove rape and that any evidence gathered may not be legally admissible - giving them "false hope" that it could help in a legal case.

"Rape Crisis England & Wales (RCEW) are aware that in parts of the country, self-swab 'rape kits' are being marketed to students and universities as a way for survivors - primarily, but not always, women and girls - to report rape, and to deter rapists," a statement issued by Rape Crisis said.