NPCC report on Violence Against Women and Girls

On Tuesday (23 July) a report by the National Police Chiefs’ Council has been published that sets out the current scale of Violence Against Women and Girls, the impact on policing, a call for a “whole system approach” and the police service’s next steps.

You can read the report from the national lead for VAWG, Deputy Chief Constable Maggie Blythe, here.

North Yorkshire Police’s Assistant Chief Constable, Catherine Clarke, said: “Violence against women and girls presents a serious threat that has devastating consequences for its victims, survivors and society.

“It remains a foremost strategic priority for North Yorkshire Police and we are committed to tackling this completely unacceptable abuse of women and girls both in our communities, online and where it exists within policing.

“In recent years we have piloted ground-breaking schemes that have been adopted nationally, our arrest rate for domestic abuse is twice the national average, and we have introduced specialist teams including a dedicated stalking team and Safeguarding Investigation Teams. We have also adopted the “Four P” (Prepare, Protect, Pursue, Prevent) approach to this national threat.

“We remain totally committed to improving our response and service to victims in the future and have begun the implementation of Operation Soteria to transform how we investigate rape and serious sexual assault, and will soon be carrying out a VAWG self-assessment that will help shape our future strategy.

“The police cannot tackle violence against women and girls alone, that is why we work closely with, and value our partner agencies and the invaluable work they do alongside us.

“The report makes stark reading and refers to the unprecedented demand on policing. It recommends a ‘whole system approach’ and that would be very welcome.”

How we are tacking violence against woman and girls in North Yorkshire’s communities in more detail:

• Violence against women and girls is a foremost strategic priority for North Yorkshire Police.
• The force’s arrest rate for domestic abuse is double the national average and one of the highest in the country.
• We have invested in our safeguarding department including an uplift in specialist investigators and in 2023 the force introduced specialist Safeguarding Investigation Teams to investigate high harm crime such as rape, serious sexual assaults, child abuse and neglect.
• We are providing specialist training for VAWG-related offences including the Specialist Child Abuse Investigator Development Programme and Specialist Sexual Assault Investigators Development Programme both for officers and supervisors overseeing investigations.
• In addition to its measure to improve investigations, the force has paved the way in pioneering new national processes, Including:
  • Unwanted prisoner contact scheme – now adopted nationally to prevent unwanted contact of victims by perpetrators in prison read more here
  • Non-molestation pilot – the force led a national pilot to enable the sharing of non-molestation order information across the country so perpetrators cannot go undetected in other areas. This pilot scheme is due to be adopted nationally in 2024
  • Project Prism workforce integrity pilot – the force led a national pilot scheme to carry out monthly police checks on its whole workforce to flag up any contact with the police in another area
• The force has introduced a dedicated stalking team. Part of their remit is to raise awareness of stalking across the force to ensure all officers are confident in identifying what stalking is. They also provide specialist investigative advice to officers and provide support to victims throughout the criminal justice process. The team are currently supporting 97 high-risk victims of stalking through their criminal justice journey and monitoring 98 investigations to provide specialist advice and guidance to investigating officers. Safeguarding has been implemented in all of these cases.
• Domestic Violence Protection Notices and Orders (DVPN/DVPO) applications are pursued wherever possible in order to give victims of domestic abuse breathing space and an opportunity to engage with support services. The force has a 99 percent success rate in orders granted at court.
• Uplift in digital forensics capability including the ability to process digital devices at scene and return devices to victims quicker
• Operation Crystal has been introduced to improve investigation standards overall. In addition to specialist training, North Yorkshire Police has also invested in training and continuous professional development for all frontline officers to improve investigation standards across all types of crime. Operation Crystal sets out the five clear investigative standards that must be followed. This back-to-basics approach sets a firm foundation for the investigation of more serious crimes. 

Next steps

• North Yorkshire Police will be conducting a self-assessment against the Policing Violence Against Women and Girls National Framework for Delivery: 2024 to 2027. Once complete this will help to inform and refresh the force’s VAWG strategy for 2024 to 2027.
• Operation Soteria - North Yorkshire Police is working to implement the new national operating model for rape and serious sexual offences (RASSO) under Operation Soteria. This is a long-term programme of change to transform how we investigate these offences by taking a victim-centred, suspect-focused and context-led approach. The programme includes specialist training for first responders including the Force Control Room and frontline officers, and the second stage of the specialist sexual assault training course for detectives. We are also increasing the number of Sexual Offence Liaison Officers across the force.

Read more about Operation Soteria here.