Really Useful Reports - 2007

Investigating and detecting recorded offences of rape

Home Office

www.homeoffice.gov.uk

July 2007

This new report summarises the findings of a study of attrition in reported offences of rape of a female in England and Wales in 2003/04. It was designed to explore several aspects around the detection and conviction of rape cases: the reasons behind the decline in recorded detection rates for rape since 1997; why marked variations in detection rates exist in different forces; and what factors best predict whether a recorded offence gets to court and results in a conviction.

The study was conducted in eight forces in England and Wales. Forces were selected to reflect the range of reported detection rate performance: three forces were selected on the grounds of having high detection rates for rape; two forces were selected for generally low detection rates. Three forces were selected because they featured in a previous comparable study of rape attrition. The intention was to collect a random sample of 100 initially crimed rapes of females (all ages) recorded by the police in 2003/04 in each force area. For each case, the police and Crown Prosecution Service case file was retrieved and coded. In total, data on 676 cases were collected.

Download the full report:
Investigating and detecting recorded offences of rape (PDF 711kB)
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From the Outset: Why violence should be a priority for the Commission for Equality and Human Rights

End Violence Against Women (EVAW)

www.endviolenceagainstwomen.org.uk

July 2007

This paper developed out of submissions made by End Violence Against Women (EVAW) to the Equalities Review in December 2006. It argues that a priority issue for the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) to consider when it is established in October 2007 should be how it addresses violence, safety and security across all the equality strands.

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From the Outset: Why violence should be a priority for the Commission for Equality and Human Rights (PDF 151kB)
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Women and Justice - third annual review of the Commission on Women and the Criminal Justice System

Fawcett Society

www.fawcettsociety.org.uk

July 2007

This report, published on Wednesday 25 July, examines the work that has been done in the last year to improve the criminal justice system for women, as offenders, victims and staff and concludes that:

1. Prison is overused, ineffective and often damaging for many women offenders, while existing community sentences often fail to meet the needs of women.

2. Services for female victims of crime are geographically patchy and vary in quality. Violence against women remains at crisis levels, and the Government has failed to produce a national strategy to address violence against women, a key recommendation of last year's Commission report.

3. The implementation of the gender equality duty must be prioritised across the criminal justice system to ensure that all criminal justice agencies are meeting their legal obligations.

Women and Justice (PDF 274kB)
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Cross Government Action Plan on Sexual Violence and Abuse

Home Office

www.homeoffice.gov.uk

April 2007

Government work on sexual violence and abuse is brought together in the cross-government Sexual Violence and Abuse Action Plan (SVAAP), published on 2 April. This includes work underway and work planned for the future to address all aspects of sexual violence, from prevention through to victim care and the response of the criminal justice system.

The purpose of the Action Plan is to:

• Tell stakeholders and members of the public what the government seeks to achieve in relation to sexual violence and abuse
• Identify the actions that are being taken to deliver objectives
• Identify gaps in existing work which require further consideration
• Increase transparency and enable accountability on delivery of objectives
• Provide a platform for developing a more strategic and holistic approach to tackling sexual violence and abuse

You can access the plan on the web at:
Cross Government Action Plan on Sexual Violence and Abuse

The Corston Report: a review of women with particular vulnerabilities in the criminal justice system

Home Office

www.homeoffice.gov.uk

July 2007

This report by Baroness Jean Corston is a review of women with particular vulnerabilities in the criminal justice system, outlining the need for a distinct radically different, visibly-led, strategic, proportionate, holistic, woman-centred, integrated approach.

You can access the report on the web at:
The Corston Report: a review of women with particular vulnerabilities in the criminal justice system