Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews has unveiled a new joint action plan to safeguard women and girls from despicable acts of violence.

The Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR) Partnership's Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy 2024-2026 outlines the key ways public sector agencies will prevent and respond to crimes such as rape, sexual assault, stalking, domestic abuse, honour-based violence and other gender-based violence over the next three years.

The PCC said violence directed at women and girls is a despicable crime that can have lifelong emotional repercussions on victims. He said too few offences result in prosecution and that it was imperative partners understood the reasons why and turned the tide, so that more investigations were successful.

Mr Matthews said: "Too many VAWG crimes go unpunished. Many never see the light of day because victims are too scared to come forward - this has to change. Justice must be secured for the thousands of women across LLR who are forced to endure the harm brought by these offences for the rest of their lives.

"I am proud to work with our colleagues in delivering this important strategy - it represents partnership working at its best. It is unacceptable and unjust that women and girls cannot live their lives freely and without fear because of the heightened risks to their safety from violence. We are united in our determination to eradicate these risks. 

"Prevention is the golden thread running throughout this strategy and we will work hard to address the attitudes and behaviour that can underpin these unacceptable crimes. Intervention will be targeted as early as possible to influence moral grounding and ensure those most at risk of being harmed or causing harm through violence are instilled with positive values in childhood and adolescence.

"We are all committed to making this strategy work to provide the support and policing service all VAWG victims deserve."

Although VAWG crimes disproportionately affect women and girls, the approaches set out in the new blueprint will benefit all victims and survivors of these crimes.

The strategy has been developed in consultation with survivors with lived experience of VAWG crimes, young people and stakeholders. The voice of victims will remain critical to the delivery of the strategy. 

The strategy will draw on evidence that intervening early can prevent violence from escalating and further offending occurring.

It sets out five core priorities:

• Preventing violence against women and girls
• Responding to violence against women and girls
• Supporting victims and survivors
• Including people with lived experience in designing services
• Strengthening the VAWG sector across all LLR's communities

The strategy's mission is to support Leicestershire Police and partners in reducing VAWG crimes, working with education, health care and community organisations to increase the support available to victims and survivors. 

It aims to ensure a strong infrastructure is in place to robustly pursue perpetrators, increase reporting by victims and to expose hidden crimes of violence for which women and girls suffer in silence and perpetrators remain unpunished. 

The Partnership will review the strategy annually and will publish a report of progress on the OPPC website.

To read the full strategy, click here.