Today (Wednesday 21 July), the government has published their strategy for tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG) that sets out a whole system approach to tackling violence.
Police and Crime Commissioner, Joy Allen said “I welcome this plan to tackle violence against women and girls and I want to put on record my thanks to the 180,000 people who responded to the renewed call for evidence following the murder of Sarah Everard – their voices have been heard loud and clear.
"I will be driving action at the local level to ensure that more victims feel safe in coming forward to report violence, confident that they will be listened to and that they will be given the support they need to seek justice, so their perpetrators are brought to account for their actions.
“We must work together to tackle this epidemic and we must put the needs of victims at the centre of everything we do. As Chair of our Local Criminal Just Partnership Board, I will be working with all criminal justice agencies to ensure victims receive the support they need to achieve positive outcomes while delivering meaningful consequences for perpetrators. To deliver the plan we need sustained funding so longer-term strategies can be implemented to prevent violence as well as providing vital support to victims. Its essential we embed a prevention-first culture so we can work together through education and awareness to prevent crimes being committed in the first instance.
“I am committed to having a more visible police presence on the streets and dedicated to introduce voluntarily recording of misogyny as a hate crime indicator. I have pledged to develop a violence against women and girls’ strategy for County Durham and Darlington to ensure that no women and girls need to live in fear and girls grow up knowing they are safe. Too many victims suffer in silence and I want to provide the right conditions to encourage victims come forward and report crimes, but we need to ensure services are put in place to support them every step of the way."
PCCs are calling for a new statutory duty requiring key agencies to prevent harms caused by VAWG.
You can access the VAWG strategy document here - Tackling violence against women and girls strategy - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
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