Norfolk domestic abuse charity says there's "still work to do", 3 years on from Sarah Everard's murder
Today in 2021, the 33-year woman was kidnapped and killed in South London by off-duty Police officer, Wayne Couzens
A domestic abuse charity in Norfolk is telling that some improvements have been made to women's safety in the county- three years on from the murder of Sarah Everard.
But the group, Leeway, admit there's still plenty of work to do when it comes to the safety of women and girls in the County.
Today in 2021, the 33-year-old woman was kidnapped in South London by off-duty Police officer, Wayne Couzens. Who was later found guilty of killing her
"lot of work around identifying spaces where women don’t feel safe"
Rhys Lloyd is from Leeway:
“We have seen some progress over the past couple years, particularly around acknowledging the fact that many women don’t feel safe about going about their everyday lives.”
“I have seen some practical changes. There has been a lot of work around identifying spaces where women don’t feel safe and taking measures like installing cameras or better street lighting.”
"Seen an increase in the number of people that are reporting abuse"
Lloyd outlined however that considering increased awareness and access to mobile phones, he revealed that as a charity they “have seen an increase in the number of people that are reporting abuse. It’s about getting ahead and identifying some of the problems before they become a bigger issue.”
When discussing what Lloyd would like to see still be improved, he said “We need to see more outcomes, we want to see perpetrators fully receive the consequences for their actions. The prosecution rate for crimes like domestic abuse or stalking is low.”
What does the picture look like in Norfolk and whats's being done to tackle all this?
In a recent National Statistics report, it was disclosed in 2023, Norfolk saw a “dramatic drop in stalking and harassment with figures down by 21.9%”
According to the National Stalking Consortium, just “5% of stalking cases in England and Wales result in a charge by the CPS.” Reportedly, “stalking crimes rose by 18,000 in the period between 2018 and 2022.”
The Governments initial response following Everard’s death was a £23 million investment to double the size of the Safer Streets Fund.
£42 million has now been allocated through the five round of this.