Opening the Thames Valley Violence Against Women & Girls Conference

My opening remarks at the Thames Valley Violence Against Women & Girls Conference:

She was asking for it. 

It’s not rape, she’s my wife.

She deserved it. 

These are the sorts of things that men will say to justify their actions, either to themselves or to others.

How we deal with these men is very much in the spotlight at the moment.

But people may rightly ask, why now? Women have been the victims of male violence since long before Robert Peel created the first modern police force. Why now, a conference, a Gold group and a week of action? Why did it take the rape and murder of another woman to focus attention on an issue that affects half of the population? Some will ask, why did I take the rape and murder of another white woman before the media paid attention? Some will ask why did it take a police officer being convicted of those hideous crimes before policing would take those issues seriously?

Now in many ways I think that is unfair, but for many that will be their perception, and for them their reality. Yet I look around this room and I see many people from both inside and outside of policing who have dedicated much of their lives to this challenge. It is only right to acknowledge the work that has gone before and build upon it. 

Thames Valley Police has long had a focus on domestic abuse. Response times, arrest rates have all been under scrutiny. Project Vigilant was up and running before the pandemic and is now a model being adopted by many. Individuals across the Force have worked tirelessly to deliver justice for victims. These are strong foundations to build upon, but we must all recognise there is a huge amount of work to do. 

That’s why we need to focus on the things we can actually change in the here and now. 

We must avoid Violence Against Women & Girls becoming the latest bandwagon. Everyone jumping on board, a headline priority for everyone, until the next thing comes along. There is a real danger in my view that the response, across society, from Government to policing and schools, simply fades as the media attention and scrutiny inevitably turns elsewhere. 

We must avoid that at all costs. This issue is far too important. Something that can affect half of our population, indeed half of our workforce cannot be allowed to be simply the latest badge we all choose to wear. 

The problem is in many ways a simple one. Too many men are violent or sexually aggressive towards women. It’s a simple fact. But the simplicity of the challenge can hide the complexity of the solutions. And that complexity can be daunting. 

The operational response to domestic abuse will be very different to ensure safety in public spaces, or how non-domestic rape is dealt with. The vision may be clear but how we deliver it will be complicated. Each of these strands are important and come with their own challenges, and that is why they all feature in my Police & Criminal Justice Plan. Recognising these nuances and responding accordingly is a strength and will allow us to make the changes that are needed. 

That is the purpose of today, to look at the practical steps that we can take tomorrow, next week, next month, within our own organisations to make women safer. 

Part of that is course culture. People often say - I’ve said it myself - the problem is one for society, not just policing. Of course that is true. In many ways it feels that with recent events in the Met (and let us not think for a moment that TVP is immune) that policing is on the back foot and playing catch up. Well we shouldn’t be catching up. The challenge of changing a culture is not be something the police can do in their own but there is no reason why the police - why Thames Valley Police -  shouldn’t be leading the national conversation on preventing violence against women and driving the changes we need. 

A big part of that conversation is about confidence in policing, which had undoubtedly taken a knock in recent years. Although we need to improve the culture and vetting within, there is a danger that we internalise the debate on confidence. Public confidence in policing stems largely from results. We may know that TVP have some great processes in place for dealing with domestic abuse. Indeed victim satisfaction is actually slightly higher amongst female victims of violence. But what the public see is that only a tiny proportion of cases end up in the courts. 

That needs to change. We need to shift gear on how we prosecute these offences, but also with how we manage perpetrators. Recognising the highest risk individuals, but also tackling the high volume incidents that can cause widespread fear

Throughout today we will hear from a wide range of people who will challenge us all and I am sure inspire us to deliver that change.

So I end where I began, with our response to those words from abusers.

No one is asking to be abused

If she doesn’t want it to happen, it is rape. 

No one deserves it.