Commissioner response to national policing statement on violence against women and girls

Police chiefs in England and Wales have this week outlined the scale of violence against women and girls (VAWG) in a national policing statement.

The National Policing Statement for VAWG, commissioned by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and College of Policing, found:

• More than one million VAWG-related crimes were recorded during 2022/23, accounting for 20% of all police recorded crime.
• Police recorded VAWG-related crime increased by 37% between 2018/23.
• At least one in every 12 women will be a victim per year, with the exact number expected to be much higher.
• Child sexual abuse and exploitation increased by more than 400% between 2013 and 2022.
  The statement found that not only is VAWG growing, but policing is seeing ever more complicated types of offending which causes significant harm to victims and society as a whole.

In response to the national policing statement, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent, Jane Mudd, said: “While I welcome the proactive stance policing has taken on helping to address these issues, the statistics still make stark reading. It is completely unacceptable that at least one in 12 women will experience violence each year in this country, something women and girls will also experience here in Gwent.

“Responsibility for violence always sits with the perpetrator. However, to tackle these behaviours, we need a whole-system approach that looks at how we stem these behaviours culturally. I am particularly concerned about the growing popularity of vile misogynistic influencers online and the impact they have on the minds of young people about what is and is not acceptable behaviour.

“It is essential that we instil positive values in children, throughout their formative years, to help tackle these issues. As a society, we simply have to stop making excuses for poor behaviours and attitudes towards women.

“I hope that today’s national policing statement is used as a turning point for women’s safety in the UK. We have a collective responsibility to speak out when we see wrong-doing to ensure that it is socially unacceptable for anyone to make a woman or girl feel vulnerable or intimidated.

“I am pleased that nationally, policing has also ensured violence against women and girls is officially classed (through the Strategic Policing Requirement) as a national threat by government and a refreshed national framework has brought the police response to VAWG in line with counter-terrorism. This includes the adoption of a tried and tested methodology used in counter-terrorism policing and serious and organised crime to tackle national threats.

“Tackling violence against women and girls was one of my manifesto pledges upon which I was elected, and will feature prominently in my new Police and Crime Plan currently under development.

“During my time as Police and Crime Commissioner I intend to use all of the power available to me to work with Gwent Police and wider partners to take bold and ambitious action to improve the experience of women and girls here in Gwent.”

The full NPCC national statement can be viewed at:
https://news.npcc.police.uk/releases/call-to-action-as-violence-against-women-and-girls-epidemic-deepens-1