Police warn of epidemic of violence against women and girls

Police are warning of an epidemic scale of offending in violence against women and girls (VAWG).
A national policing statement, which brings together comprehensive data and analysis has revealed 3,000 offences are recorded every day.
Police recorded VAWG related crime increased by 37 per cent between 2018 and 23. Over one million VAWG related crimes were recorded during 2022/23, accounting for 20 per cent of all police recorded crime.
One in every six murders related to domestic abuse in 22/23, with suspected victim suicides following domestic abuse rising year-on-year.
Police leaders are now calling for a whole-system approach that brings together criminal justice partners, government bodies and industry, in a new partnership that seeks to reduce the scale and impact of VAWG.
It is believed around 1 in 20 people are believed to be perpetrators of VAWG each year and evidence shows many of these perpetrators will have touch points with a number of agencies outside of policing through their life, presenting opportunities for intervention.
Policing has now ensured that VAWG is officially classed as a national threat and a refreshed national framework has brought the police response to VAWG in line with counter-terrorism and serious and organised crime.
Policing has also now adopted the 4P approach from counter-terrorism policing for tackling VAWG. The 4Ps include: Prepare (forces must have the right culture, skills and resources); Protect (action is being taken to protect individuals, families and communities); Pursue (perpetrators of violence are being relentlessly pursued); and Prevent (policing must work with partners as part of a whole-system approach).
Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blyth, Deputy CEO of the College of Policing and NPCC lead for violence against women and girls, said: “We are absolutely determined to turn the tide on violence and abuse faced by women and girls and will continue to work tirelessly to do better for victims.
“Our focus will always be to bring the men behind these pervasive crimes to justice. By enhancing the way we use data and intelligence, we will improve our ability to identify, intercept and arrest those causing the most harm in communities.
“We know that continuous improvement is needed to strengthen policing’s response to VAWG. Improvements must be driven nationally, ensuring consistency from force to force to give victims the service they expect and deserve.”
The analysis has identified five critical threats to women and girls: rape and serious sexual offences; domestic abuse; stalking and harassment; child sexual abuse and exploitation; and online and tech-enabled VAWG.
A new dedicated policing hub, the National Centre for Public Protection in the College of Policing, would support forces with specialist knowledge and training for investigators and officers, and lead on a national approach to preventative work with other agencies.
Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blyth continued: "A centralised hub within policing that brings together specialised skill sets and capabilities would support police forces in improving their response to VAWG.
“However, this will only achieve progress as part of a wider, effective criminal justice system, which at present is overwhelmed and under-performing for victims.
“Violence against women and girls is a national emergency. We need the support and direction of government to intervene and address the current problems within the criminal justice system and lead the way on a whole-system approach to VAWG.
“We aspire to a position where an effective criminal justice response to VAWG is the last resort. We need to move forward as a society to make change and no longer accept VAWG as inevitable.”
Sophie Francis-Cansfield, head of external affairs at Women’s Aid, said: “While the findings of the National Polices Chiefs’ Council and College into the scale of violence against women and girls in this country are alarming, it is important to remember that many survivors will not report their experiences to the police, therefore we know the issue will be much larger than the data shows.
“Women’s Aid agree that violence against women and girls is a national threat, and echoes calls for a whole-system approach to tackling the problem and centres the most marginalised. This includes coordination between the criminal justice system, the government, and experts, and enhanced training and education, delivered by specialist services, to those working in statutory services like the police. Without meaningful collaboration and action, women and children will continue to be failed when it comes to be protected and when seeking justice for the abuse they have endured.”
Posting on Instagram, campaigner Laura Bates said: "Glad to see this message penetrating into the mainstream and being recognised as a priority by the National Police Chiefs Council alongside an acknowledgment of the sheer scale of male violence against women and girls. Since writing Men Who Hate Women in 2020 I have worked with counter terror police, MPs, the Home Office, the department for education, and hundreds of schools and carried out training with individual police forces across the country as well as specialist training for hundreds of individual officers and teachers. All focused on recognising extremist misogyny as a form of terrorism and the grooming of vulnerable young men into this ideology as a form of radicalisation. There is so much further still to go- better funding and training to support schools and teachers to recognise and tackle the problem, tighter regulation and transparency for social media platforms and websites, a better definition/recognition of misogynistic terrorism across politics and media, rooting out institutional misogyny in policing and a commitment to tackle the underlying problem of normalised societal sexism, but this is a step in the right direction."
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