Statistics relating to violent crimes against women

2

1240/5(8629)

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS BY DEPUTY L.M.C. DOUBLET OF ST. SAVIOUR

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 24th FEBRUARY 2015

Question

Will the Minister advise:

1. what statistics the department holds relating to levels of violence against women and girls in Jersey, including rape and sexual assault, and what is being done to reduce these levels and encourage women to report violent crimes; particularly rape and sexual assault;
2. in light of the prevalence of these types of crime, what the department is doing, or planning to do, if anything, to increase their detection and resolution;
3. whether the department can do more to help prevent these crimes, and what other departments could do to contribute towards this;
4. whether the department is aware of the new charity Jersey Action Against Rape which was set up to provide support for victims of these crimes; whether the department intends to support the work of this charity and, if so, how?

Answer

1. There is no single crime category to cover the broad subject area.

Records of reported crimes committed in relation to this area are maintained which are set out in the table below:-

2. We have drawn up a Rape Action Plan jointly with the Law Officers Department for 2015 in an effort to increase detections and prosecutions. It is referenced in the Policing Plan. We also are in dialogue with the Home Affairs Minister to bid for law drafting time to provide for a Sexual Offences Law which would modernise and update the law in this area. (A more detailed briefing note on action being taken in respect of violence against women and girls is attached).
3. Early discussions have begun across States Departments, including Home Affairs to do more to help prevent these crimes but before a cross- departmental strategy can be drawn up we need to conduct local research to understand the landscape in Jersey and then deliver appropriate intervention and prevention strategies. We cannot rely on police statistics as this type of crime is massively under-reported. Consequently, under the auspices of BaSS, the Department will be sponsoring research into crimes of this nature.
4. We are aware of JAAR. We have worked closely with the committee members and helped deliver training inputs to their volunteers with regard to the police response to victims of sexual violence. We are also in the process of setting up a referral system whereby we can refer victims with consent to the counselling services of JAAR. We also plan to involve them in the future development of a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) in Jersey.

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS (VAWG) BRIEFING NOTE

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is one of the most widespread abuses of human rights worldwide, affecting one third of all women in their lifetime. It is a global public health problem, the leading cause of death and disability of women of all ages and has many other health consequences. There are many different strategies in place across the world and the below is a snapshot of the approach adopted by the UK Government.

The UK government is determined that violence of all kinds against women and girls should end and in 2010 published a cross-government strategy "A call to end violence against women and girls" and a supporting action plan which has been updated annually since. Violence against women is a despicable crime which has absolutely no place in any society. But for too long, too many women and girls have suffered domestic abuse, rape, sexual assault and crimes such as stalking.

The UK Government has made significant progress as set out below. This is due to:

• Clear strategic objectives focused on prevention, provision of services, partnership working, and justice outcomes and risk reduction;
• Commitment right across Government with activity co-ordinated across Departments overseen by an Inter-Ministerial Group chaired by the Home Secretary;
• Active engagement with local areas and voluntary sector partners to inform policies related to violence against women and girls;
• Ensuring wider Government reforms support the approach to tackling violence against women and girls; and
• A commitment to almost £40 million of ring-fenced funding over the spending review period for specialist violence against women and girls services from the Home Office and Ministry of Justice.

Key activities over the last 12 months include:

• Re-launching the highly successful This is Abuse campaign, and a new focus on reaching young male perpetrators.
• Completion of the domestic violence disclosure scheme (Clare's Law)  pilot and the announcement that the scheme will be rolled out nationally from March 2014, allowing the police to disclose information to the public about a partner's previous violent offending and thereby empowering people to make an informed decision about the future of a relationship.
• Evaluation of the Domestic Violence Protection Order pilot, and the announcement that this too will be rolled out nationally from March 2014, preventing perpetrators of violence from returning to their home for up to 28 days, giving the victim time to consider their options.
• A review of the police response to domestic violence by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, which will report by April.
• Encouraging employers to sign a Pledge  committing their organisations to having a comprehensive policy to support staff experiencing domestic violence as part of the Public Health Responsibility Deal. The Home Office, Department of Health, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, the Ministry of Justice, Crown Prosecution Service, Public Health England and NHS England have all already signed the Pledge and it is our ambition that all civil service departments will be signatories by April 2015.

• Publishing a "lessons learned" document based on the findings of the Home Office Domestic Homicide Reviews, which identified common themes and made recommendations to be considered locally.
• Progressing legislation to criminalise forced marriage in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill, to ensure that this unacceptable practice can be robustly prosecuted.
• Successfully bidding for funding (approximately £250,000) from the European Commission to fund a project raising awareness of Female Genital Mutilation  (FGM) in the UK. Project activities will include a promotion campaign for the NSPCC FGM helpline, community engagement, learning packages for safeguarding professionals, awareness raising sessions with Local Safeguarding Children's Boards and hosting an EU wide event to share effective practice.
• Part-funding a new study into the prevalence of FGM in England and Wales. The new research will be the first update since a 2007 study revealed that over 20,000 girls in the UK could be at risk of FGM each year. The results are due to be published in April.
• Maintaining one of the most robust sex offender management regimes in the world which has included introducing new legislation to reform the civil orders available, giving the police and courts broader powers to manage registered sex offenders and those who pose a risk.
• Working with the Director of Public Prosecutions to understand the fall in referrals from the police to the Crown Prosecution Service in rape and domestic violence cases, and agreeing a six point plan to tackle this issue, including the establishment of a national scrutiny panel led by the Director of Public Prosecutions and the National Policing Lead for Rape.
• Funding the development and delivery of a training package on stalking to further assist frontline workers to identify cases of stalking, and support and advise victims appropriately.
• Continuing to work with the Crown Prosecution Service, National Policing Lead, the College of Policing and others to raise awareness of stalking, and encourage further training of police and CPS staff.
• Funding the development and delivery of a series of Commissioning Masterclasses, specifically designed to support voluntary sector organisations providing local domestic violence and sexual violence services to engage effectively with the new commissioning landscape.
• Engaging closely with local commissioners, including issuing a Violence Against Women and Girls fact pack and holding a conference on commissioning for Police and Crime Commissioners, and establishing a cross-Government task and finish group to drive progress around commissioning issues.
• Supporting work by the voluntary sector to develop a standards framework  to assist local commissioners to make informed choices about local sexual violence and domestic violence services.
• Setting out a programme of work through the National Group on Sexual Violence against Women and Girls

In Jersey we do not as yet have an equivalent of a Government VAWG agenda, however, we have begun some early discussions within the States of Jersey Police and Home Affairs with regard to developing an Island Strategy. It is, however, important that we first assess the specific landscape of violence in Jersey in order to successfully intervene. For example we must assess the exact types and combinations of violence that are most prevalent in Jersey; which populations are most vulnerable to victimisation and perpetration; which factors drive the overall level of physical and sexual violence in the population. In addition we mustn't lose sight of our achievements to date. These include:

• Re-launching the successful "Ask, listen, respect" website and campaign to help change attitudes towards rape and sexual violence; especially those who think the victim is to blame.
• Working with the LOD to deliver an action plan on rape and serious sexual violence to improve investigations and prosecutions locally.
• Supporting work by the voluntary sector, in particular JAAR, the Jersey Women's Refuge, Victim Support and the Domestic Violence Forum, to provide independent specialist support to victims of these crimes.
• Rollout of the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (Clare's Law) and Sex Offender Disclosure Scheme (Sarah's Law) locally.
• Conducting a local review of the police response to domestic abuse taking into account the findings and recommendations of HMIC in the UK.
• Launching a multi-cultural campaign against domestic abuse where the force once again highlighted the prevalence of domestic abuse within our community and reached out those affected across all our cultural groups.
• Making available an online survey to victims of domestic abuse in order to improve the police response and quality of service.
• Working in partnership to deliver an IDVA service and MARAC which will reduce the risk to women and girls who are victims of these crimes.
• Rolling out a CSE / Sexting awareness campaign specifically targeted at preventing teenagers becoming victims or perpetrators of sexual violence or abuse.
• Delivering in partnership training for frontline professionals to equip them to recognise and deal effectively with victims and perpetrators of CSE.
• Maintaining a robust sex offender management regime.
• Continued provision of ADAPT (Domestic Abuse perpetrator programme ) achieving a 70% success rate.
• Reconstitution of multi-agency DA steering group under auspice of SPB.
• Development of a local SARC.
• Introducing domestic violence protection orders and notices.
• Delivery of key messages through PMNW to schools in order to educate our young people and change attitudes.
• Launching Operation Phoenix to raise local awareness, in particular with hoteliers re sexual exploitation.

The field of violence against women and girls has advanced considerably over the last two decades and there is an expanding body of knowledge and evidence of what works. This positions Jersey well at this time to seek to develop and implement strong primary interventions once it understands its local landscape.

Glossary:

BaSS   Building a Safer Society Strategy

CPS  Crown Prosecution Service

CSE  Child Sexual Exploitation

DA  Domestic Abuse

FGM   Female Genital Mutilation

HMIC   Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary

IDVA   Independent domestic violence adviser

JAAR   Jersey Action Against Rape

LOD   Law Officers' Department

MARAC  Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference NSPCC  National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children PMNW  Prison Me No Way

SARC   Sexual Assault Referral Centre

SPB  Safeguarding Partnership Board

USI  Unlawful sexual intercourse

VAWG  Violence against Women and Girls