Over 3,000 offences of violence against women (VAWG) are recorded each day, and one in 1 in 12 women are victims each year according to figures out this morning from the National Police Chief’s Council
Policing has undergone significant changes to the way it tackles violence against women and girls in recent years. Progress has been made to drive standards and consistency across all police forces.
However, due to the epidemic scale of offending, police leaders are 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 the violence
Over one million VAWG related crimes were recorded during 2022/23, accounting for 20% of all police recorded crime and Police recorded VAWG related crime increased by 37% between 2018/23.
At least 1 in every 12 women will be a victim per year, with the exact number expected to be much higher while child sexual abuse and exploitation increased by more than 400% between 2013 and 2022.
Not only is VAWG growing, but we are also seeing ever more complicated types of offending which causes significant harm to victims and society as a whole. One in every six murders related to domestic abuse in 22/23, with suspected victim suicides following domestic abuse rising year-on-year.
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.”
