Your Weekly Policy Update: 9December - 16December
In this week’s briefing:
  • The Mayor of London announces investment of £72 million to tackle crime across London
  • The Public Accounts Committee finds that “variability in the quality and consistency ofhelp and protection services is leaving children at risk ofharm”
  • The National Audit Office concludes that the “Government’s response has not kept pace with the growth in online consumer fraud”
  • The Ministry of Justice publishes the quarterly criminal court statistics

Politics
In the House of Commons, the following question was answered:
Paul Flynn (Newport West): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (…) how many incidents of hate crime were recorded in 2014-15.
Sarah Newton (Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Home Office): The Home Office collects and publishes statistics on the number of hate crimes recorded by the police on an annual basis. In 2014/15, the police recorded 52,465 hate crimes in England and Wales.
The UK Government published its response to the Wales Bill.
The Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee (in the National Assembly for Wales) launched an inquiry on the impact of the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union on human rights protection in Wales. Submissions can be made up until 10 February 2017.
The week ahead:
  • 19 December – House of Commons. Legislation. Policing and Crime Bill – 3rd reading.
  • 20 December – House of Commons. Justice Select Committee. Oral evidence session. Implications of Brexit for the justice system.
  • 20 December – House of Lords. Oral questions. Assessing the success of the Prevent Strategy deradicalisation programme -Baroness Hussein-Ece.

Violence Against Women and Girls
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, announced investment of £72 million (a tranche of the London Crime Prevention Fun) to tackle crime across London. This includes investment in services to support victims of domestic and sexual violence. The fund will be awarded “according to the greatest need across London’s boroughs”.
The Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee (in the Welsh Assembly) published its report into whether the Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015 is working. The Committee emphasised the importance of Sex and Relationship Education. The report noted: “In order to prevent abuse and violence from happening, the Welsh Government must ensure that promoting healthy relationships at a young age is a statutory duty”. It went on to say “we are concerned that without a statutory requirement for schools to deliver healthy relationships teaching, while some schools will continue to address this issue effectively, others will opt out, as is currently the case. We consider this kind of variation to be in direct conflict with the Act’s ultimate aim of consistency”.
On 15 December, the Welsh Government launched a new domestic abuse campaign.
Historical Sexual Abuse
The Victims Commissioner, Baroness Newlove, responded to Sir Richard Henriques’ review which called for those who make a complaint to be referred to as ‘complainants' and not as 'victims' by the Metropolitan Police Service. The Victims Commissioner said: “Referring to a victim of crime as a ‘complainant’ would be a great step backwards in the treatment of victims and survivors (…) belief and acceptance of the events a victim has experienced, makes up a huge part of helping a victim towards their recovery”.
In the House of Commons on 13 December, Sir Gerald Howarth (Aldershot) (Con) led a debate on Operation Midland and the Henriques report.
Support for Children
A report by the Public Accounts Committee has found that “variability in the quality and consistency ofhelp and protection services is leaving children at risk ofharm”. The Committee raised concern that children with disabilities are not receiving the support they need as at a local level the focus is often on protecting, as opposed to helping, children. It recommends that by March 2017, the Department for Education “should set out (…) how it will ensure minimum standards so that localauthorities clearly understand best practice in services and all childrenhave equal access to high-quality services”. The Committee further recommends that “the Department shouldalso examine whether children with disabilities should have a differentpathway of support unless there is clear evidence that childprotection is an issue”.
Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation
The NSPCC reported that it has received 1,767 calls over three weeks to its helpline set up to support footballers who have experienced sexual abuse as a child.
Research carried out by Barnardo’s has revealed that of children who are groomed online a high percentage go on to be sexually exploited. 297 of 702 children supported by five of the charities services found that 42% had been groomed online. Of those, 61% met the perpetrator and were sexually exploited.
Hate Crime
The Home Affairs Select Committee held an evidence session on hate crime and its violent consequences. Fiyaz Mughal, founder of Tell MAMA, reported that teenagers are the most likely to commit Islamophobic hate crimes.
In its response to the Home Affairs Committee's report on antisemitism in the UK, the Government agreed with the “Select Committee’s criticism of the National Union of Students’ failure to take sufficiently seriously the issue of anti-Semitism on campus”. It added “universities should ensure there is a safe environment for both academic inquiry and freedom of speech within the law”.
On 12 December, the Prime Minister, Theresa May, announced that the UK will adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of anti-Semitism “to ensure that culprits will not be able to get away with being antisemitic because the term is ill-defined or because different organisations or bodies have different interpretations of it”.
Fraud
A report by the National Audit Office (NAO) concluded that the “Government’s response has not kept pace with the growth in online consumer fraud”. The NAO estimates that, on average, victims of mass marketing fraud are between 75 and 79 years old and lose around £4,500 each. It also notes that many experience psychological problems as a result and require support from social services.
The Payment System Regulator (PSR) responded to the authorised push payments (APP) super-complaint submitted by Which? in September 2016. Which? called on the PSR to ensure UK banks offer better protection to customers who are tricked into transferring money to fraudsters. In response, the PSR has agreed with the FFA UK a plan of action that requires the “industry to develop a common approach or best practice standards that sending and receiving PSPs (payment service providers) should follow when responding to instances of reported APP scams”.
The Charity Commission warned this week that charities are at risk of cyber-attack. The two prevalent scams it warned charities to be aware of are both phishing emails, the first (ironically containing the subject title ‘crime prevention advice’ and purporting to be from the Met police) includes an attachment containing malicious content that records keystrokes and steals passwords. The second, titled ‘notice of intended prosecution’ distributes Banking Trojan malware, through a malicious link embedded within the email. Charities are advised to protect themselves by ensuring they have up to date virus protection, not opening attachments or links in unsolicited emails, and regularly backing up important files.
On 16 December, it was announced that Baroness Shields will become a full time Home Office Minister and the Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Internet Crime and Harms.
Criminal Court Statistics
The Ministry of Justice published the quarterly criminal court statistics for the period April to June 2016. The main findings include:
  • 49% of compensation for victims is paid within 12 months and 56% is paid within 18 months.
  • In the magistrates’ courts, the average number of days from offence to completion is 162 days - this is an increase from the year before (155 days) but a slight fall on the previous quarter (164).
  • In the crown court, the average number of days from offence to completion is 359 – exactly the same as last year.
  • The offence with the longest wait is fraud, which took 632 days on average from offence to completion (a fall on last year)
  • Sexual offences took an average of 545 days from offence to completion (a rise on last year)

In response to the release, Lucy Hastings (Director at the independent charity Victim Support) said: “These shocking figures highlight the long and uncertain waits for compensation that victims are facing. This delay can serve as a constant reminder of what they have suffered and can leave them feeling unable to move beyond the crime. It is appalling that only 49 per cent of compensation for victims is paid within 12 months of being awarded by the courts. Currently compensation must first be recovered from the offender before the victim receives payment. Victim Support believes that instead the court should make payment direct to victims and then recover funds from the offender. This will save victims from the stress and uncertainty of not knowing whether they will be paid, and enables them to move on with their lives sooner.”
Family Court Statistics
Family court statistics published by the Ministry of Justice showed that between July 2015 and September 2016, there have been 97 applications and 79 orders made for Female Genital Mutilation Protection Orders (FGMPOs) up to the end of September 2016. It also showed an increase in the number of cases where neither party have legal representations as a result of changes to eligibility requirements for legal aid. In July to September 2016, neither the applicant nor respondent had legal representation in 33% of private law cases, an increase of 12 percentage points from July to September 2013.
Honour Based Violence and Forced Marriage Offences
On 14 December, the CPS and National Police Chiefs’ Council published a joint protocol on the investigation and prosecution of 'so-called' Honour Based Violence / Abuse and Forced Marriage Offences. Section 8 specifically relates to victims and witnesses.
Offender Management
The Equality and Human Rights Commission published a report into ‘Non natural deaths following prison and police custody’. The report found that “poor access to health care, confusion over responsibility for post-detention care and inadequate risk assessments may have contributed to more than a hundred deaths following police custody and prison detention.” Problems identified included a lack of accountability and record-keeping by responsible agencies, failure to share risk assessments, and a lack of monitoring of the wellbeing of people released from prison or custody, even when it is known that they have a mental health condition which could put them at risk of suicide.
The Ministry of Justice published a review of the Youth Justice System in England and Wales by Charlie Taylor. The review proposed the introduction of Secure Schools which would be smaller custodial establishments for between 60-70 people, set up within schools legislation and governed and inspected as schools. One day prior to the publication of the review, Justice Secretary Elizabeth Truss announced that two Secure Schools will piloted in England and Wales.
Feature of the Week

Spotlight on Victim Support’s Vulnerable Victims Service in South Yorkshire
Placing victims at the heart of the Criminal Justice System (CJS) is a shared ambition of all our partners and the overarching aim of our Vulnerable Victims Project (VVP). Now in its third year, this South Yorkshire PCC innovative project continues to achieve excellence in victim care for the most vulnerable victims in the area, working with all crime types but with a special emphasis on tackling child sexual exploitation (CSE) and supporting children.
It takes a huge amount of courage for young victims to speak out, they often don’t understand what is happening to them and have reported to our caseworkers (pictured)how scared they are. The South Yorkshire PCC recognised that vulnerable victims face many challenges in engaging with the CJSand that supporting victims to achieve best evidence, to cope and recover from the effects of crimes, requires specialist, tailored support interventions.
We recognised that victims really value consistency in support, so our team operate a single supporter model, they use specially designed age appropriate toolkits and programmes of support to help victims come to terms with the trauma, understand and engage with the justice process and service provision is determined by the victims and their family’s needs.
Our caseworkers are experts on the victims’ CJS journey and understand the impact of crime, so can empathise with victims, manage their expectations, support and advocate throughout the process. During the police CSE investigation in Rotherham, VS caseworkers accompanied officers from the early investigation stage and supported 21 victims through to the court case and beyond. The trial resulted in the conviction of six abusers who were sentenced to a total of 102 years, achieving justice the victims deserved and a safer community for vulnerable children.
This project has now been incorporated into the core service for victims which is run by Victim Support in South Yorkshire.
VS Policy Update Editor: Alexandra Barker
To send us your feedback or for further information on the contents of this briefing please email