SCOTLAND'S courts are so bad that some rape victims wish they had never been through it – even if their attacker is convicted, according to a charity.

Sandy Brindley, of Rape Crisis Scotland said: "What women are telling us is that their experience of the justice process, and particularly of giving evidence in court, is so traumatic that even in cases where there is a conviction, the cost of getting justice was too high. This is in no way acceptable.”

She was speaking as a report on the investigation and prosecution of sexual crimes criticised the procedures of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) for being slow and bureaucratic, failing to communicate well enough with alleged victims.

The review by the Inspectorate of Prosecution highlighted victims who described the court process as degrading, cruel, terrifying and humiliating. "Court was absolutely horrendous,it was worse than being raped," one victim said, while another claimed “Although there was a guilty verdict, I would never go through it again.”

The impact of delays on victims is a major problem, according to the report. In one case it took 15 months for the Crown to contact the complainer after police submitted a report on her attack.

As well as criticising COPFS for failing to keep victims informed of the progress of cases, the report says that when they do so they often use language which they may not be able to understand.

In one case, a 15 year old child learning disabilities who had been the victim of an alleged attack was sent a letter referring to "interview by a precognition officer" and terms such a "obtaining personal records", "bail with special conditions," "cited to court" and "use of special measures."

"[These are not accessible terms for anyone unfamiliar with the criminal justice system may have caused confusion or even distress," the report says. It adds that there is "an unrealistic expectation by COFS of victim and witnesses' understanding of the prosecution process and how the criminal justice system operates.

There are no advocacy or court based support systems for child victims, and such cases are often subject to delays, it says. Adult victims are also not receiving frequent enough support. "The criminal justice system places an onus on victims to seek updates, decide about special measures, find appropriate support, deal with the shifts and uncertainties in scheduling of trials and narrate what happened in an environment over which they have no control," inspectors concluded.

"For many dealing with the trauma of the offence, the process is too much and it explains why many simply disengage."

The report makes a dozen recommendations for change including improvements to contact with victims and efforts to cut the number of cases which need more investigation before proceeding to trial.

However Rape Crisis Scotland said more radical reform was needed to tackle the "unacceptable" failings revealed by the report.

Ms Brindley said: “This report raises serious concerns about justice responses to rape. For a survivor to describe the process of seeking justice as being worse than being raped is a statement that should concern us all.

“We acknowledge efforts by Crown to improve communication and the overall prosecution process. There are many dedicated staff working within COPFS who are committed to providing a high quality service to victims and witnesses. It remains the case, however, that the system overall is retraumatising rape complainers to an unacceptable degree.”

The current system is simply not working for victims, or in the interests of justice, she said. "If you were to design a system that get the worst evidence from rape complainers, it would be the current system. Trials frequently take place up to two years after someone reports to the police. Court dates are changed frequently, with complainers building themselves up to give what is very difficult evidence only to be told the night before that it isn’t going ahead. This can happen many times. Sometimes even the city the court case is going ahead in can be changed at short notice.”

Rape Crisis Scotland is calling for the implementation of the The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service Evidence and Procedure review published in 2015 – in particular a move to video record rape complainers evidence, including the defence cross examination, close to the incident/s to avoid them having to give evidence in court.