Domestic abuse charity welcomes specialist rape teams but says action is needed ‘here and now’
Specialist teams will now be operating in every police force by December 2027, bringing the deadline forward by 18 months from summer 2029.
A Suffolk and Norfolk domestic abuse charity, Leeway, says bringing specialist rape and sexual offence investigators into every police force sooner is a positive step, but has warned the change alone will not tackle the pressures currently facing survivors, and says more needs to be done to prevent abuse and support people who never report offences to police.
The Government has confirmed specialist teams will now be operating in every police force by December 2027, bringing the deadline forward by 18 months from summer 2029.
The teams will specialise in investigating rape and sexual offences, supporting victims and pursuing offenders.
The policy was first announced as part of the Government's Violence Against Women and Girls strategy in December 2025.
"The devil is in the detail"
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the previous timetable was “too slow” and said the Government needed to be “laser focused” on tackling violence and abuse against women and girls.
However, Jools Ramsay-Palmer, chief executive of Leeway Domestic Abuse Services, said she wanted to see more detail about what would change for survivors before the national rollout is completed.
She said: “Broadly speaking, I welcome Andy Burnham's acceptance that the levels of violence against women and girls is unacceptable and his reassurance that his government will be laser focused on this issue.
“But as always, the devil is in the detail. Rolling out new investigators by the end of next year rather than 2029 does nothing to stem the levels of those offences now.”
‘A significant number of people do not report’
Ms Ramsay-Palmer also argued that specialist police teams can only investigate offences which are reported to the authorities.
She said Leeway works with people who choose not to report abuse, including some who are frightened of entering the criminal justice system or do not believe going through the process will be worthwhile.
“There are a significant number of people who do not report because they are fearful of the court system or they believe that it simply isn't worth the hassle,” she said.
She added that those survivors may instead approach specialist support organisations such as Leeway, but said this does not in itself hold perpetrators to account.
Refuge has also welcomed the earlier introduction of specialist teams while warning that further action is needed. In its response to the Government announcement, the charity said some survivors avoid reporting abuse because they fear being disbelieved or undermined by police.
Calls for greater focus on prevention
Alongside the policing changes, ministers have announced £13.3 million for specialist protection-order teams across up to 10 police forces in England and Wales.
The teams will test approaches to enforcing protection orders, which can include electronic monitoring, exclusion zones and requirements for perpetrators to attend behaviour-change programmes.
The Government is also rolling out Domestic Abuse Protection Orders, which can cover physical abuse, controlling or coercive behaviour, economic abuse and stalking. Unlike some previous orders, they can remain in place for as long as a court considers necessary.
Ms Ramsay-Palmer said enforcement and offender-management programmes were important, but argued more investment was also needed before abusive behaviour develops.
“We need to be supporting young people to understand what a healthy relationship is and what is not,” she said.
She called for conversations with young people about misogyny and harmful material they may encounter online, arguing prevention needs to sit alongside support for survivors and action against offenders.
Leeway runs a healthy-relationships programme in educational settings in Norfolk.
Ms Ramsay-Palmer said its two members of staff deliver sessions in schools, colleges and universities, but claimed the organisation does not have enough resources to provide all the follow-up support that may be needed when young people disclose concerns following those sessions.
She said: “We just have to accept that young people are accessing information that is wrong and that is dangerous and is building a problem for the future.”
Government says measures will strengthen protection
Safeguarding Minister Satvir Kaur said bringing forward the specialist teams would help ensure victims and survivors receive the protection and support they deserve.
The Government says the accelerated rollout forms part of a wider effort to tackle violence against women and girls, including specialist domestic abuse support in some 999 control rooms, protection orders and programmes targeting perpetrators.
Ms Ramsay-Palmer said she wanted that work to form part of a broader approach encompassing prevention, survivor support and the criminal justice system.
She said: “It has to be on all fronts. It has to look at preventative measures. It has to look at national programmes and education in schools and with young people.”
She added that effective support for survivors and programmes aimed at perpetrators would also be needed if the Government was to make sustained progress on violence against women and girls.