Police rape and sexual offence teams to be rolled out 18 months early
Every police force in England and Wales will have specialist rape and sexual offence teams in place by December 2027 after the Government accelerated the rollout by 18 months.
The specialist teams, dedicated to investigating rape and sexual offences, supporting victims and bringing offenders to justice, had originally been due to be operating nationwide by the end of the current Parliament in summer 2029.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the original timetable was inadequate. “The scale of violence and abuse suffered by women and girls in this country is unacceptable. We must be laser focused on stamping out these vile crimes. These measures were going to be introduced in 2029, but I think that’s too slow.”
The announcement means all forces in England and Wales will be expected to have specialist teams operating more than a year earlier than originally planned. As part of the package, up to 10 police forces will also share £13.3 million in funding to establish specialist protection order teams.
The teams will trial new approaches to enforcing protection orders designed to keep victims safe, including electronic monitoring, exclusion zones and requirements for perpetrators to attend behaviour change programmes.
Director of the National Centre for Violence Against Women and Girls and Public Protection, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Helen Millichap, said the additional funding would support efforts to improve victim safety and confidence.
“We are already preparing for these changes, with work underway alongside forces to develop specialist rape and sexual offence teams,” she said. “We are also working with the Home Office to establish up to 10 pilot VAWG protective orders teams.”
The Government said the changes form part of its wider programme to halve violence against women and girls within a decade.
Recent figures estimate that around 900,000 adults experienced sexual assault in the past year, while around 3.8 million experienced domestic abuse and 1.4 million experienced stalking.
Safeguarding minister Satvir Kaur said the accelerated rollout would strengthen policing’s response and ensure victims and survivors received better protection and support. “By ensuring every police force has specialist rape and sexual offence teams sooner, and funding for new protection order teams, we are strengthening our response, relentlessly pursuing perpetrators and helping victims live their life without fear,” she said.