I was shocked to hear that local maths teacher, Jamie Sansom, was injured in an alleged stabbing at Tewkesbury School this week. All of us wish him a speedy recovery.
This week I announced welcome progress in our plan to bring more rapists to justice. Two years ago, we set out a roadmap with ambitious and stretching targets to increase the number of rape cases brought before the courts. I am pleased to say that we are on track not just to meet, but to beat, those ambitions.
The number of charges compared to the last period pre-Covid has gone up by over 90%, and the number of cases received by the Crown Court is up by over 160%. We have doubled funding for rape support centres, benefiting local organisations like GRASAC – Gloucestershire Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre. We have also introduced over 700 Independent Sexual Violence Advisors, individuals who help guide victims through the criminal justice process.
And here in Gloucestershire, we have kept open Cirencester Nightingale Court to help bear down on the increased caseloads which built up over the pandemic.
I spent much of my professional life prosecuting sex offences. When I started out, there was little support for those who came forward to report this traumatising crime. Now, there is an effective Victims’ Code, which sets out in detail what victims are entitled to expect from the police and CPS, and how they can hold organisations to account. Victims are far more central to the process.
But we must go further, which is why I announced the national rollout of the Operation Soteria operating model. This ensures that police forces focus their investigation on the alleged behaviour of the suspect, and don’t get drawn into unnecessary and intrusive scrutiny of the victim’s personal background.
In addition, 2,000 extra police investigators will be specially trained in rape and sexual offences by April 2024.
There are already signs of success, with all five pathfinder forces showing an increase in the number of cases being referred to the CPS and a reduction in the time taken to charge.
There is always more to do, but this is solid progress.
[Column published in the Cheltenham Post]