Claire Waxman has proposed the current system is replaced by an independent Victims’ Care Hub designed to provide tailored support.
The Metropolitan police are failing to provide effective support to rape victims and should be replaced by an independent body, London’s victims’ commissioner has said.
In an interview with the BBC, Claire Waxman, who works to improve the experience of victims of crime across the city, said the situation was “frustrating”, and accused the Met of going “backwards” in terms of the support it provides.
“I can’t have victims being treated like this any longer,” she said. “I’m not shocked we hear some terrible responses from the police to rape survivors. That just shows a complete lack of understanding and specialism of those officers.
“It’s frustrating for me; five years working with the Met as a critical friend to try and move them forward and they just haven’t moved forward, in fact they’ve gone backwards.”
Waxman’s comments come after data released by the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime at the end of last year revealed there had been a 7% rise in the number of rape victims withdrawing their cases between 2019 and 2021.
Not only is this a worrying trend, but it’s also an occurrence which contributes to the low conviction rates for rape nationwide; in April, justice ‘scorecards’ released by the government found that under 1% of reported rates currently lead to a conviction.
While Waxman said she could see the Met was trying to do the work necessary, she also said the force could not get it “implemented and embedded” to the level needed – and proposed plans for a Victims’ Care Hub that would provide case updates and offer a point of support for all rape victims going through the justice process.
In a statement issued to the BBC in response to Waxman’s suggestions, the Met’s head of public protection, Commander Kevin Southworth, said the force could “win back” support by increasing its detection rate.
“I believe we can steadily increase rates and reverse the statistics, holding the hearts and minds of survivors through this difficult process,” Southworth said.
“Ultimately, our rape investigation teams, dedicated as they are within our units, are amongst the most committed and highly trained staff that we’re lucky enough to have within our ranks.”
In May, the Crown Prosecution Service made changes to its pre-trial therapy guidance as part of its effort to reverse the decline in rape prosecutions and increase the number of “strong cases” reaching court.
However, campaigners warned that the rule changes could actually deter victims from seeking the support they need – and urged the service to release tighter guidelines.
Sexual assault referral centres provide a safe space and dedicated care for people who have been raped, sexually assaulted or abused. If you have been raped, sexually assaulted or abused and don’t know where to turn, search “sexual assault referral centres” to find out more or visit www.nhs.uk/SARCs to find your nearest service.
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