We Believe You
There is help and support on PEI. Healing can start now.
Organizational Statement from PEI Rape and Sexual Assault Centre (PEIRSAC)
May 14, 2025
This afternoon during Question Period, a member of the official opposition shared misleading information in the PEI Legislature regarding the status of PEIRSAC’s therapeutic programming. We are writing to correct the record and clarify our services.
NOTICE ON OUR SERVICES
PEIRSAC Counselling Waitlist Temporarily Paused - Navigation Support Still Available
As of May 1st, 2025, PEI Rape & Sexual Assault Centre is placing a temporary pause on our counselling waitlist. We ask you to check back for updates on August 1st, 2025. This difficult but necessary decision was made to ensure that survivors already waiting for care receive timely, trauma-informed therapy and that our staff can provide sustainable, high-quality services moving forward.
Our populations have shifted drastically since PEIRSAC opened its doors in 1983, and especially over the past six years. As a trauma-based organization, we are ethically responsible for ensuring that our services reflect the real needs of the real people we serve, not just the legacy models we've inherited. That said, we hold deep gratitude for the decades of community care that brought us to this moment. We are joyfully indebted to the work that now allows us to adapt and grow.
During this pause, we are also restructuring our therapeutic program to reduce wait times in the future while keeping our commitment to trauma-informed, survivor-centred care at the heart of everything we do. This includes designing more accessible pathways into therapy and exploring new ways to meet the diverse healing needs of our community. We look forward to reopening our waitlist later this year with a stronger, more responsive system in place.
Navigation Support Is Still Available
While the counselling waitlist is paused, we are still offering Client Support and System Navigation services because healing, justice, and safety take many forms.
We recognize that sexual violence is a systemic issue that can impact intersecting parts of a person’s life. Our Navigation Team is here to help survivors advocate for themselves, be a supporting voice, and access the support they need on their own terms.
We can walk beside you through:
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Accompaniment to police, court, or other authorities
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Support during Sexual Assault Evidence Kit (SAEK) procedures
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Advocacy and accompaniment to appointments related to sexual assault
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Connections to housing, income supports, community mental health, and other services
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General systems navigation, documentation assistance, and advocacy with service providers
If you’re unsure of what you need, that’s okay. Reach out. We’ll help you figure it out together.
To access Navigation Support or book a Navigation Support Session, call us at 1-902-369-8055
Please know that we believe you.
PEI Rape and Sexual Assault Centre
We are a non-profit, government funded organization that provides services to individuals of all genders residing in PEI who have experienced recent or historic sexual assault and childhood sexual abuse. We offer counselling support and innovative healing programs from our many locations across the island including Charlottetown, Summerside, Alberton.
Sexual assault is any unwanted act of a sexual nature imposed on another person without their consent.
Groups who are marginalized by society – including young women, transgender and gender non-conforming people, Indigenous people, immigrants and refugees, sex workers, people living with disabilities, seniors, and people living in poverty – are at increased risk of sexual violence.
PEIRSAC supports and advocates for survivors regardless of gender, sexuality, race, background, or belief. Our aim is to support healing both at the individual and community level, and to work towards spaces where all residents of PEI are safe from sexual violence. To achieve this we work collaboratively with, and in ways that empower, individuals and organizations.
Our Primary Services Include:
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Individual and group therapy and counselling for youth (12+) and adults of all genders
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Psychoeducational information and community programming
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Referrals to other community support programs
We do not operate a support line outside of office hours.
If you are feeling overwhelmed or just need someone to talk to, please contact:
PEI Mental Health and Addictions Phone Line
1-833-553-6983
National Sexual Assault Support Line (24/7)
Kid’s Help Phone (also for youth)
1-800-668-6868 Text: 686868
Native Youth Crisis Hotline
REACH OUT
General Inquiries
please call or text 902-566-1864 or toll free 1-866-566-1864
Navigation Requests and Support
please call or text 902-368-8055 or toll free 1-888-368-8055
PLEASE NOTE: The Centre operates Monday to Friday from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. If you call the general inquiries or counselling support line outside of office hours you will asked to leave a voice message and we will call you back on the next business day. Please indicate whether it's ok for us to leave you a voicemail.
PEIRSAC acknowledges that the land on which it operates is the traditional unceded territory known as Mi’kma’ki. PEIRSAC respects the history, spirituality, and culture of the Mi’kmaq people who have lived on Epekwitk (Prince Edward Island) for over 15,000 years.
We gratefully acknowledge PEIRSAC’s core funder:
