New national assessment reveals scale of violence against women and girls
At least one in five police recorded crimes relate to public protection threat areas, according to the first Strategic Threat and Risk Assessment published today by the National Centre for Violence Against Women and Girls and Public Protection (NCVPP).
The assessment provides the most comprehensive national picture to date of the threats facing women, girls and children across England and Wales. It brings together data, insight, operational experience and contributions from partner organisations to build a shared understanding of how these threats are evolving and where policing and partners must focus their efforts.
The findings show that violence against women and girls accounts for much of this demand, but that recorded crime figures tell only part of the story. Many victims experience crime that never reaches police data, particularly abuse that takes place online, meaning the true scale of harm is significantly greater than any dataset can capture.
The STRA identifies five critical threat areas:
- domestic abuse
- repeat perpetrators
- public-space sexual offending
- image-based abuse
- child-on-child abuse
Although each presents distinct challenges, they are connected by common themes of vulnerability, exploitation and repeat offending.
The report also highlights how technology is reshaping the threat landscape. The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, the growth of image-based abuse and the increasing influence of online misogyny are creating new opportunities for perpetrators to offend, exploit and control victims, presenting policing with increasingly complex investigations and new safeguarding challenges.
Director of the NCVPP, Helen Millichap said:
"Behind every statistic in this STRA is a victim, survivor or family whose life has been affected by violence, abuse or exploitation.
"Every day, women, girls and children experience harm. In their homes. In their communities. Online.
"The STRA sets out to understand the scale of harm both seen in the data and that hidden from view. "
The assessment also points to areas of progress, including Operation Soteria, which has demonstrated what can be achieved when evidence, operational expertise and partnership working come together. The NCVPP will build on this progress to develop a more consistent, evidence-led and preventative approach across policing.
The report is clear that policing cannot address these threats alone. Lasting change will require a whole-system response involving criminal justice, safeguarding, education and health partners, as well as greater accountability from industry and technology companies in protecting victims and tackling those who cause harm.
The assessment will be used to inform strategic priorities across policing, shape the future work of the NCVPP, and strengthen the evidence base for tackling violence against women and girls and public protection threats.
Read the Strategic Threat Risk Assessment in full
Click here to learn more about the STRA and watch our animation with key findings