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Sexual Offences

The Sexual Offences Act 2003 updated the law, much of which dated back to 1956.

The main provisions of the Act include the following:

  • Rape is widened to include oral penetration
  • Significant changes to the issue of consent
  • Specific offences relating to children under 13, 16 and 18
  • Offences to protect vulnerable persons with a mental disorder
  • Other miscellaneous offences
  • Strengthening the notification requirements and providing new civil preventative orders

Find out more about how we prosecute sexual offences

Home » News Centre » Press Releases » New sex laws reflect modern society says DPP

New sex laws reflect modern society says DPP

01/05/2004

Protection of the young and vulnerable and tougher penalties for dangerous criminals are the aims of the new Sexual Offences Act, which comes into force today.

The new legislation demonstrates the commitment of the entire Criminal Justice System to support victims and ensure offenders can be punished severely for their crimes.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Ken Macdonald, QC, said: "The Act modernises and strengthens the law on sexual offences to reflect the current society in which we live. There are new issues facing society today - the advent of the Internet and the freedom it entails has made it easier for offenders to target children and vulnerable people and some of the changes have taken this into account.

"The new legislation sets out what is unacceptable behaviour, and provides clear and coherent sex offences which protect individuals, especially children and the more vulnerable from abuse and exploitation.

"It also sets out better protection for the public by increased monitoring of sex offenders, and by ensuring they are appropriately punished.

"The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is fair and non-discriminatory and has been designed to make the prosecution of sexual offences more successful, through the cooperation of all areas of the Criminal Justice System."

The Act includes

Stronger Protection for Children

  • Children under 13 cannot legally consent to sexual activity and the offences against children under 13 do not require consent.
  • A range of new offences designed to tackle all inappropriate sexual activity with children, including a new offence of causing a child to engage in sexual activity - which will capture behaviour such as inappropriately persuading children to undress for sexual motives.
  • A new offence of meeting a child following sexual grooming which makes it a crime to befriend a child on the internet or otherwise and to meet or intend to meet the child with the intention of sexually abusing them.
  • A civil order to apply both on the Internet and off-line, which will enable restrictions to be placed on people displaying inappropriate sexual behaviour towards a child before an offence is committed.
  • New offences relating to sexual exploitation of a child that will protect children up to the age of 18. They will cover a range of activity including: buying the sexual services of a child, causing or encouraging children into sexual exploitation, facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child and controlling the activities of a child involved in prostitution or pornography.
  • Maximum penalties for many sexual offences against children and vulnerable people have been raised to reflect the severity of these crimes.
  • Updated offences relating to sexual activity with a child family member to better reflect the modern family and offer more protection to children.

Stronger protection for vulnerable adults

  • Three new categories of offences to give extra protection to those with a learning disability or mental disorder from sexual abuse. Including 'breach of a relationship of care', to protect those who are vulnerable to exploitative behaviour from their carers.

Stronger protection for the public

  • A new order to make those known to have been convicted of sex offences overseas register as sex offenders when they come to the UK, whether or not they have committed a crime here.
  • Offenders on the register to provide National Insurance details as a further safeguard against evasion. And new powers to enable the police to cross-check details of offenders on the register with passport, National Insurance and driving licence records, once the infrastructure is in place, so that any breaches can be identified more quickly.
  • The period within which a sex offender must notify the police of a change of name or address to be reduced from 14 days to three.
  • Sex Offender Orders and Sex Offender Restraining Orders to be amalgamated into a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO); it will be possible to make such an order on anyone convicted of a violent offence where there is evidence they present a risk of causing serious sexual harm.
  • A new law to deal with people who commit an offence with the intention of committing a sex offence.
  • A new offence to protect the public from unacceptable sexual acts in public toilets, complementing existing public order offences.
  • A new offence to strengthen the law on indecent exposure.
  • A new offence of voyeurism capturing those who observe others doing private acts without their knowledge for sexual gratification.

Stronger offences for sexual violence

  • Clarifying the law on consent in regard to rape. A defendant's belief that the victim consented must be both honest and reasonable.
  • Providing a list of circumstances where it is presumed that a person did not consent to sexual activity.
  • A new offence of sexual assault by penetration.
  • A new offence of causing sexual acts without consent.
  • Rape extended to include penetration of the mouth by the penis.

Stronger offences to deal with sexual exploitation

  • There are new offences against trafficking people into, within and out of the UK for the purposes of sexual exploitation.
  • In addition to the new offences relating to commercial sexual exploitation of children, there are new offences relating to the commercial exploitation of adult prostitution.

Equality in the law for men and women

  • Offences of buggery and indecency between men, which criminalise certain consensual homosexual activities, which would not be illegal for heterosexuals are to be repealed.
  • Men who have been convicted of these offences where the activity was consensual and the victim was over 16 can apply to be taken off the sex offender's register.

Clarification on the position of those advising children on sexual matters

  • Exemptions from prosecution for aiding or abetting a child sex offence for people who provide advice to children on sexual health in order to protect their physical safety or emotional well being, or to prevent sexually transmitted disease or pregnancy.
  • Guidance being issued to prosecutors provides that prosecutions for sexual activity between children under the age of 16 are highly unlikely to be in the public interest where the activity is genuinely consensual, not abusive or exploitative and the parties are of a similar age. However, it is important the criminal law covers under-age sexual activity in order to protect those who are victims of abuse.

  1. The Sexual Offences Act 2003 gained Royal Assent on 20 November 2003.
  2. Further information on the Act, including guidance and explanatory notes, is available at www.homeoffice.gov.uk
  3. The proposals were developed from the Sex Offences Review set up by the Government in 1999. The Review was conducted independently of Ministers and with the following terms of reference:
    • to provide coherent and clear offences which protect individuals, especially children and the more vulnerable, from abuse and exploitation;
    • to enable abusers to be properly punished; and
    • to be fair and non-discriminatory.

    The recommendations of the independent Review were published for public consultation in 'Setting the Boundaries' in July 2000 (available on www.homeoffice.gov.uk).

  4. In addition, the Government carried out a Review of the Sex Offenders Act and proposals were published for public consultation by Home Office in July 2001 (see Home Office press notice 184/2001).
  5. For more information on this release contact the CPS Press Office on 0207 796 8105