Christians have a role to play in the pursuit of perpetrators of violence against women and girls

The statistics around perpetrators evading the criminal justice system are stark. In the year ending June 2025, only 9.2% of rape offences, 11.25% of other sexual offences and 8.8% of stalking offences resulted in charges. To make things worse, the number of sexual offences waiting to go to court is at a record high. When you convert these percentages into the number of people who have not seen justice, it is devastating and can be hard to reconcile. 

As Christians, our first desire is the eradication of VAWG. We long to see a society free from abuse and injustice. Sadly, this is not yet the case; the world will one day be renewed, but for now we can look to the legal order of the Bible and how it speaks into good and evil. We rightly expect people to face the consequences of their actions, so we look to the law to prosecute perpetrators and to support survivors of these crimes. The church too must step into this space, bringing sinful and abusive behaviours into the light and loving the broken hearted, pointing them to their Good Shepherd.

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There is considerable acknowledgment throughout the strategy of the issues of inconsistent responses within the police force, the ineffective use of technology and data and slow movement in the justice system. Subsequently, we have found ourselves with considerable levels of reoffending and perpetrators facing no consequences for their deeply harmful actions. 

The measures are twofold: reforming the police force’s ability to deal with VAWG-related crimes and using public information campaigns.

This strategy marks an escalation in the government’s approach to perpetrators as they plan to use the types of law enforcement powers that are reserved for terrorists and organised crime. It is significant that such emphasis is being put on the severity of VAWG-related crimes.

There is clear need for the police to be better equipped to meet the needs of victims. There has been a history of cases going unreported due to barriers that include embarrassment, low trust in justice outcomes and fear of retaliation. Therefore, this strategy is implementing ​‘Raneem’s Law’, which will improve police response to domestic abuse victims, ensuring they are ready to protect victims when they reach out. There will also be specialist rape teams embedded in every police force across England and Wales. A lot of money has been promised to fund these measures over the next few years. It is imperative that the government delivers on these claims.

I pray that these measures will adequately support survivors as they seek justice. It is essential that someone’s ethnicity, address or economic status does not act as a barrier to finding support from the police and the justice system.

I took this photo as I travelled into London at the start of the year. It is captioned: ​“Harassing her with constant messages is abuse. Enough. End violence against women and girls.

This was the first example I have seen of the government’s new public information campaigns that sit at the heart of their response. The call is clear; we all need to be on guard, holding others accountable and speaking into situations that are enabling the mistreatment of women. As churches, we must approach this issue with humility. Sadly, research conducted by Evangelical Alliance member organisation Restored shows that 1 in 4 in the UK will be impacted by domestic abuse, including within our church congregations. We must hold our brothers and sisters to account too. The justice system has a significant role to play, but as individuals within each other’s lives, we do too.

The strategy is clear, ​“We must give society the tools to root out harm wherever it occurs, in workplaces, sports clubs, communities and in the home. Stopping misogyny and harm is everyone’s business.” 

While these measures are welcome and timely, the government could do more in calling out tech companies that are enabling harmful behaviours. Alongside our VAWG work, we will continue to engage with the Online Safety Act. This article will help you think through how we navigate the online world. 

Over the coming months, we will release a Cross Section episode and other resources to help us engage in this conversation. Let us be praying for the men and women in our churches, those who have been let down by the police and criminal justice system and those with hidden and sinful attitudes.