Wiltshire charity highlights major VAWG concerns
Police chiefs say violence against women and girls is a national emergency
Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is being called a 'national emergency' by a leading police chief as daily reports of such crimes reach almost 3,000.
In 2022/23, police recorded more than a million violent crimes against women and girls as a report from the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) and the College of Policing is published today.
That report estimates that every year at least one in 12 women will be a victim. That's around two million women.
But the true number is likely to be much high as not all crimes are reported.
The new Government has said it wants to halve the number of violent crimes against women and girls - but Claire Marshall, from Wiltshire domestic abuse charity FearFree, told Greatest Hits Radio that's going to be difficult.
"I think it's a great strategy, it's ambitious but at the moment I don't think it's a realistic target," she said.
Claire added: "We're seeing increasing escalation in terms of reporting, prevalence is still extremely and while the criminal justice system is experiencing significant delays and has challenges in terms of speed, procedures and enabling a supportive environment for people to go through the court system, these issues are still not being tackled."
Major concerns in multiple areas
Claire added that there are concerns around who VAWG is policed.
"The experience is extremely mixed for clients," she said, adding: "Some clients say the officers they're dealing with don't understand the issues or sometimes the seriousness of the situations."
Worryingly, Claire said some clients were being put at risk of harm when officers are trying to make them safe or deal with the perpetrator.
There's also concern about the amount of time it's taking for Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS) disclosures to be made.
Under Clare's Law, people can request information about a partner's history of abuse under the 'Right to Ask' policy, or police can inform them under the 'Right to Know'.
Claire told us the delays cause a lot of issues.
"People end up staying with the partners and not understanding what they may be experiencing within the relationship, so that is a matter that needs resolving," she said.
It means that FearFree aren't able to advise clients on how to move forward to keep themselves safe.