Complex layers of abuse provide a new prosecution challenge in tackling Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)

•    Exclusive Crown Prosecution Service data shows significant overlap of domestic abuse across key VAWG crimes, including rape, strangulation, ‘honour’-based abuse, harassment, stalking and revenge porn 

•    The CPS recognises VAWG as a form of discrimination against women and a fundamental issue of human rights.

•    Stephen Parkinson, Director of Public Prosecutions, introduces the new CPS VAWG strategy as a deliverable under his “personal priority” to improve VAWG prosecutions.

A significant overlap in crime types relating to violence against women and girls is a complexity prosecutors are working to overcome as they strive to seek justice for those facing abuse. 

Data from the Crown Prosecution Service shows the growing relationship between domestic abuse and other related crimes such as rape, strangulation, revenge porn, stalking and honour-based abuse. 

Today as the CPS launches its five-year action plan to tackle these crimes – as part of the Government’s ambition to halve violence against women and Girls in a decade - prosecutors have set out the scale of this growing challenge. 

Stephen Parkinson, DPP, said: “The nature of violence against women and girls continues to evolve and although it is true that people are more aware of the wide spectrum of abuse, it is not sufficiently appreciated that abuse often involves different layers of offending.  It is our responsibility to present to the court the full picture of criminality that occurs, so that courts can sentence appropriately.  

“All too often, in what is presented as a domestic abuse case involving physical violence, we see many layers including strangulation, controlling or coercive behaviour and revenge porn. 

“It is vital we train our staff to recognise the full picture of abuse so the charges we make reflect the totality of the offending. 

“It is only by doing this and ensuring that perpetrators face the full force of the law that we will the message get through, especially to younger men and boys – and we will start to see progress in reducing these crimes.” 

CPS data shows that more than a third of rapes charged occur as part of domestic abuse.

Data also reveals that more than one in 10 charges of coercive or controlling behaviour – an offence which covers a pattern of behaviour over a period of time – link to rape.

Domestic abuse also relates to nearly 7 in 10 instances of harassment, over 8 in 10 instances of revenge porn and stalking, and 9 in 10 instances of strangulation and ‘honour’-based abuse. 

Baljit Ubhey, Director of Policy and the Senior Responsible Officer for the CPS’s VAWG strategy, said: "Prosecutors must put into practice new understandings of how different crimes intertwine and recognise that all victims have different barriers to justice. 

“The new CPS VAWG strategy is about confronting the full, layered, painful reality of abuse faced by so many victims, so we can prosecute it with the seriousness required. 

“We cannot be blinkered. We cannot put these crimes into boxes. We cannot ignore the overlap. 

“We’ve come a long way in how we prosecute these abhorrent crimes, but we know trust is earned by those we serve. Our work isn’t done until every case is built robustly, every victim feels supported, and every community trusts that justice will be delivered.” 

The strategy, launched today focuses on a clear plan of action along the main crime types within VAWG. It was developed from a focus of listening to victims, learning from their lived experiences, and delivering justice through prosecutions which reflect the full reality of each case of abuse. 

All prosecutors in England and Wales will now work under the new CPS VAWG strategy to deliver justice for victims of VAWG. 

Set out by Stephen Parkinson, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), the CPS’s new VAWG strategy targets every aspect how cases are built, taken to court, and presented.

Under the strategy, prosecutors will put new learnings about the crossover of VAWG crimes into practice. This will be achieved by embedding academic findings into cases, undertaking further training and scrutinising cases to understand how they present in real situations.

The Solicitor General Ellie Reeves MP said: “Violence against women and girls is abhorrent, and this government is absolutely committed to halving these heinous crimes over the next decade. This requires radical action from all parts of government to root out these behaviours in our communities, tackle perpetrators, and protect vulnerable victims.

“The CPS’s VAWG strategy is a positive development in demonstrating their commitment to understanding how different VAWG crimes are connected, improve how they prosecute violent offenders and better support victims.”

“There is more work still needed to ensure we prioritise vulnerable victims and deliver justice for our communities. As Solicitor General this is my number one priority and I will continue to work with Director of Public Prosecutions to ensure the CPS deliver on this strategy.”

Several projects have already been delivered under the new VAWG strategy, with recent months seeing the launch of the CPS’s video guides to special measures for certain victims, and the implementation of Victim Service Standards. 

Rape also continues to be a strong focus. Work is continuing to make sure lessons are learned from successful case work and better data collection with a Rape and Serious Sexual Offences Casework Strategy learning programme.  

Prosecution guidance and training will be updated to reflect the complexity of cases where rape is a part of a broader pattern of abuse, such as coercive control, stalking, or ‘honour’-based abuse. 

This is a key contributor to the government’s mission to halving VAWG in a decade.