Police-CPS joint national rape action plan – Final Report 2024

Contents

• Foreword
• Our joint work delivered through this Action Plan
  • Our people
  • Building a strong case as early as possible
  • Working together to improve our engagement with victims
  • A joint commitment to scrutiny of our decisions and learning
• What are we doing next?
• Senior Responsible Officers reflections of the JNAP

Foreword by Chief Constable Sarah Crew, Lead for Rape and Adult Sexual Offences, National Police Chiefs' Council, and Baljit Ubhey, Director of Strategy and Policy, Crown Prosecution Service

We recognise the devastating and life changing impact rape can have on victims¹. In January 2021, with the determination to see justice for more victims of rape, the police and CPS launched our Joint National Action Plan (JNAP) setting out our intention to improve the investigation and prosecution of rape and serious sexual offences. Since its launch, the JNAP has been crucial in delivering real step change in how we investigate and prosecute rape cases, building and strengthening both national and local relationships between police and CPS. It paved the way for Operation Soteria, which developed the Police and CPS National Operating Models (NOMs) for rape cases. Together, we have developed policies and guidance reflecting current best practice, working through the JNAP to consistently put policy into practice.

All this work would not have been possible without the dedication of police officers, prosecutors, staff and stakeholders who have invested time and energy into getting us where we are today. We are encouraged to see a significant increase in volumes of referrals and volumes of charges since the launch of the JNAP. Since January 2021² we have seen a 152% increase in adult rape referrals (this includes referrals for early advice or for a charging decision) from the police to the CPS and an increase of 168% in charge volumes for adult rape. 

We are, however, not complacent. We know there is more work to be done. Whilst we will continue to monitor our referral and charge volume data to ensure this trajectory is sustained, we will also continue to focus on those areas where we have further to go. 

In this report we have come together to reflect on what we have learnt, how we have delivered improvements, and what we have achieved to date, with a look to the future on our work in partnership to improve our service to victims of this most devastating of crimes and to pursue justice in every possible case. 

Our joint work delivered through this Action Plan 

The police and CPS have necessary and different roles. In essence, when a rape is reported the police are responsible for investigating and gathering evidence.  The CPS is responsible for reviewing the evidence in cases sent to them by the police and deciding whether we can bring a prosecution. These roles are unique and different, but to work effectively, they need to be complementary and built on strong local partnerships starting from the very early stages in the journey of a case. 

The original JNAP made 32 commitments. It was refreshed in October 2022, at which point we had completed 24 of these commitments, with eight in progress. We then committed to a further 12 actions, bringing the total number of activities left for us to deliver to 20. 

Of the 20 deliverables, we have completed 19 of the actions. The accompanying Annex lists updates and outcomes in greater detail. 

The one remaining action is in progress and will continue to be tracked through our new governance moving forward: the psychological injury evaluation pilot has received 80 psychological injury reports, with the evaluation due once cases involved in the pilot are finalised at court. 

There are two actions which we have expanded in scope and are therefore being delivered through other governance mechanisms. The CPS Victim Transformation Programme will be taking forward the delivery of the enhanced service offer for victims of rape, and there is ongoing independent academic research exploring the distinct circumstances of rape in domestic abuse, the insights from which will be shared with the CPS and Operation Soteria Home Office, NPCC and College of Policing Joint Unit.

This section details our key work delivered under the JNAP.

Our people

Our people have always been at the heart of the JNAP. We recognised that for us to deliver fair investigations and prosecutions, our investigators and prosecutors need the right tools and support for their roles. Providing appropriate learning and development, building their expertise, and supporting their wellbeing to ensure they have the capacity to deliver justice, is a core pillar in improving our joint response to rape cases.

Over the last three years the police and CPS have worked tirelessly to ensure our people are confident, capable, and well trained with specialist knowledge, skills, and insights that are required for their roles. Embedding a clear understanding of each other’s roles, remit and responsibilities, as well as knowledge of the legal and policy framework within which they operate, has been key. Investing in our people has been and will continue to be essential in maintaining and developing the dedicated, passionate, and skilled workforce necessary for these challenging and harrowing cases. 

Rape and sexual offence cases referred to the CPS are managed by highly trained prosecutors working in specialist units. We have delivered on our commitment to increase our RASSO workforce, to support our strategic aim of seeing more cases investigated, charged, and prosecuted. Since implementation of the JNAP, CPS RASSO units have increased by 70% (360 to 611 FTE³), which is a testament to our prioritisation of RASSO during a challenging environment. The CPS will continue to ensure we are appropriately resourced to meet the demands of RASSO cases. 

The Police Uplift Programme brought twenty thousand (20,951) additional officers into police forces in England and Wales by March 2023, creating an opportunity to rebuild specialist capacity and capability in the investigation of RASSO. With this uplift comes the increased requirement for specialist training, and to embed learning through gaining of experience which can only be acquired through time. Operation Soteria and the implementation of the NOMs across all police and CPS areas are helping to define the shape and scale of the ongoing investment required in this area. 

To help bridge the training gap between the lessons learned over the last three years of Operation Soteria and the Police Uplift Programme, the College of Policing have worked with academic experts on sexual offending to bring specialist training in line with the NOM. The rape and serious sexual offences (RASSO) investigative skills development programme (RISDP) is an interim course designed to take the principles of the NOM to those who may be new to investigating RASSO. Policing exceeded the governments national target to train 2,000 officers in RISDP before April 2024, with 4,540 having completed the specialist course as of May 2024. The refreshed version of the Specialist Sexual Assault Investigator Skills Development Programme (SSAIDP) was released in September 2024. This has been refreshed by the College of Policing and leading academics to bring training in line with the lessons learned through Operation Soteria and the NOM. Together the RISDP and SSAIDP will help embed learning and rebuild specialism in the investigation of RASSO.

We recognise that continued professional development and training is crucial in investigating and prosecuting rape and sexual offences. We support the importance of specialism in these highly complex cases.  We know there is much we can learn from each other, and through the JNAP we have seen how our people benefit from learning together with CPS areas and local police forces regularly coming together to share learning, promote good practice, and share reflections on how we can continue to improve our joint working. 

Various products supporting learning and development have been produced, and we have held joint conferences across CPS and policing, alongside a range of local learning events attended by both CPS and police colleagues. National Learning Network events continue to be held, outlining the themes and insights from the Operation Soteria academics, with learning outputs shared across policing and CPS to inform good practice.

“We have worked as a joint collaborative investigation and prosecution team to develop and inform the training and support our peoples’ need to deliver on the values and the aims of the JNAP. As a team we have pooled our expertise, resources, and contacts to ensure the commitments of the JNAP are embedded in our organisational learning and culture. One example of the work we have produced is a podcast created by early adopters of Operation Soteria who described their journey honestly and authentically.  We felt this was important to share with colleagues across the 43 forces and CPS Areas who were all at different stages of their partnership working.  We hope this can be used as a tool to start talking about our joint goals and to be honest about the challenges we may face.  We have been immensely grateful for the additional work and commitment colleagues across policing and the CPS have invested in our JNAP sub-group and impressed by the range of skills and knowledge.”

T/Detective Superintendent Natasha Todd, Nottinghamshire Police 
Jo Lazzari, District Crown Prosecutor, CPS North West

Case study: CPS East Midlands and East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU)

CPS, Police and EMSOU held a joint forensics conference in January 2024, on how to improve ways of working to benefit RASSO cases. Casework examples were shared where early advice had achieved positive results primarily because of a clear forensic strategy. EMSOU spoke of the challenges around balancing resources and how officers and prosecutors could better support its work by having earlier case conferences with their forensic scientists to agree a forensic strategy and confirm timescales.

Findings from the joint conference were disseminated to the wider CPS Area and Police Forces’ teams and since the conference, several cases have had early forensic conferences with EMSOU which has resulted in improved forensic strategy with early input from scientists who have the skill and expertise to better inform the investigative and prosecutorial approach to forensics.

Building a strong case as early as possible

Effective partnerships between the police and CPS are essential for building the strongest case. It is important to build professional working relationships early on in an investigation.  Early Advice (EA) is key, resulting in high-quality cases being referred by police to CPS for a charging decision.

Following the independent academic evaluation interim findings from Operation Soteria, we have produced an updated Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for EA as well as guidance, which sets out the approach to obtaining and providing EA, improving the consistency and quality of this provision. The EA model promotes joint working during the investigation process, including agreement on reasonable lines of enquiry, which are proportionate and necessary to build the case.

To support our investigators and prosecutors, the CPS and NPCC have created webinars and podcasts as part of a joint learning package, including themes around building trust between organisations and on specific products such as effective Early Advice, Third Party Material and Digital Devices. Based on the insights from Operation Soteria and following the CPS and Equally Ours research which found the public’s accurate understanding of rape continues to be outweighed by false believes, misunderstandings and lack of knowledge, the CPS is updating the guidance for prosecutors to embed the suspect-focused approach when building case strategy and emphasise reframed suspect-focused narratives to ensure prosecutors are building strong and effective cases from the outset.

“The Early Advice Memorandum of Understanding between the Police and CPS which was implemented in July 2021 has been developed further. Early engagement between investigators and prosecutors is key in ensuring that there is a clear understanding of the evidence, and advice can be provided to build the strongest case possible. We listened to feedback from police and prosecutors which was that they really valued the opportunity to have live time conversations about their cases. The refreshed MoU has now been implemented which requires investigators and prosecutors in rape and sexual offence cases to have a conversation at the point when early advice is being provided by the prosecutor. This increases understanding and can help focus an investigation on the evidence which is important to reduce the time it takes for a prosecution decision to be made. It also ensures that prosecutors and police build relationships and work together on these serious and sensitive cases.”

Janet Potter, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor, CPS North West

Case study: CPS North East and Northumbria Police

A highly intoxicated victim was helped into a taxi by members of the public. Instead of taking her home, the taxi driver went on to sexually assault her. The victim had no recollection of this but reported she was aware something was wrong the following morning as she was in pain and bleeding. 

An early case planning conference was held between the officer and prosecutor, working together to adopt a suspect focused approach in gathering the evidence to tell the whole story of what had occurred that night. This included a press appeal to locate the ‘good Samaritans’ who had helped the victim into the taxi to give evidence regarding her level of intoxication and therefore capacity to consent, analysing the taxi driver’s dashcam footage to build a picture of his actions before the incident and photographing the victim’s clothing so that the fact it had been ripped could be used evidentially. 

The agreed actions and approach from the early case planning conference meant the investigator and prosecutor built a case focused on the predatory behaviour of the suspect demonstrated through targeting a lone, drunk female after his shift as a taxi driver had ended. The defendant was successfully convicted after trial.

Working together to improve our engagement with victims

We know that the way victims experience the criminal justice system is critical to public confidence. This was an area we knew we had to improve, particularly on how our organisations engage directly with victims as well as Independent Sexual Violence Advisors (ISVAs) whose role is vital in supporting victims through their journey to justice. As we highlighted in the JNAP refresh report, we launched the ISVA framework which sets out a range of minimum standards to be expected from police, CPS and ISVA agencies to forge stronger working relationships and seamless communication between partners.

To further embed the importance of this partnership working in supporting a victim, we have created a learning podcast for police and prosecutors, to capture best practice and reflections on effective collaborative relationships between all parties involved, from leaders of CPS South West, Avon and Somerset Police and Safe Link. To ensure communication between organisations is clear and timely, the CPS have also set up an ISVA mailbox so that any queries from an ISVA can be sent directly to the appropriate CPS Area RASSO unit. 

Through the JNAP we tested ‘familiarisation meetings’ where rape victims are provided an opportunity to meet the prosecution team to discuss special measures, raise any questions about the process and share any concerns they may have about giving evidence. Building on this, the CPS has introduced a new national entitlement for all adult victims of rape and other serious sexual offences to be offered a meeting with a member of the prosecution team before a trial.  This right is set out in the revised Victims’ Code of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024.

This offer is a key feature of the CPS’s new enhanced offer to adult RASSO victims. As part of this enhanced offer, we have also introduced a dedicated Victim Liaison Officer into every CPS RASSO Unit to support better engagement with victims and their supporters.  They play an important role in improving how the CPS communicates with victims, and joining up with others in the criminal justice system to ensure that where we engage with victims this is coordinated. We are committed to getting this right.

Case study: CPS South West and Avon and Somerset Police

The suspect approached the lone victim at a night club and befriended her by identifying shared interests. The victim left the club with the suspect to his car where he violently sexually assaulted her. Afterwards he escorted her home. The victim did not disclose the rape to police until two years later during unrelated contact with officers. The victim was supported by a specialist police Engagement Officer and benefited from the support of an ISVA as the investigation was picked up by specialist RASSO investigators. They applied a suspect focused approach, leading to the identification of the suspect’s wider criminality and other RASSO offences charged against him by another police force. Two other cases of rape by the suspect that had been closed as No Further Action (NFA) were also identified in the original force. A pattern of behaviour emerged where the suspect would supply drugs to the victims before sexually assaulting them when they were unconscious or incapacitated, and this included offences relating to domestic abuse.

Police investigators approached CPS for EA and actions were agreed including liaising with investigators from the other police force to share information to capture the full nature and breadth of the suspect’s behaviour, and to revisit and support the suspect’s previous victims. The wide ranging enquiries built a strong case which clearly evidenced the suspect’s predatory behaviour and undermined his version of events, which led to the suspect being found guilty of all counts against two unrelated victims and sentenced to 16 years imprisonment.

A joint commitment to scrutiny of our decisions and learning

Reviewing decisions and opening these decisions up to scrutiny provides an opportunity for learning for both our organisations. 
A particular focus of scrutiny is where our organisations have taken the difficult decision to not charge or progress further with a case.  This decision may be taken by the police or by the CPS. The police may make the decision before anything has been shared with the CPS, or after seeking early advice. Both our organisations actively invite scrutiny of our NFA decisions from each other, expert practitioners, and community members.

As part of the NOMs, we have introduced joint local rape scrutiny panels and have produced standardised guidance which reflects the findings from the independent evaluation of the CPS Operation Soteria which was published in March 2024. These panels provide the time and engagement of police and prosecutors for reflective practice alongside specialist community and voluntary sector partners to identify lessons learnt in a constructive approach, including scrutiny of actions, decisions and communications taken in a case. This is in tandem with the RASSO specific Joint Operational Improvement Meetings (JOIMs) between prosecutors and police that have been embedded for local Areas and forces to identify priorities and drive strategies to deliver improvements based on local context. 

In January 2024, the Operation Soteria Home Office, NPCC and College of Policing Joint Unit held a two-day conference on the Police NOM with leaders from across all forces to ensure the suspect-focused, victim-centred and context-led approach could be championed by leaders as the NOM is embedded, and to continue the journey of culture change. The CPS presented the CPS NOM at the conference, highlighting the overlap between policing and CPS NOMs and opportunities for joint working and alignment. 
We are very grateful to the third sector and victim support groups who have provided feedback and external scrutiny of our organisations. We value the insights and issues that are raised, and the CPS will continue to publish quarterly data on our website alongside stakeholder sessions to discuss the data and policy updates.

Case study: CPS Wessex and Hampshire Constabulary

An NFA Rape Scrutiny Panel was held between Hampshire Constabulary, CPS Wessex and support services in January 2024. One of the cases reviewed was of a vulnerable victim who had reported being raped at her home by a friend who is also a vulnerable adult. A witness, another vulnerable adult and a friend of the victim and suspect, was at her home during the incident. The case was closed as NFA due to conflicting accounts from the victim and witness and no further evidence or reasonable lines of enquiry were identified by the investigator. 

The panel identified learning points around ensuring the accuracy and consistency of case notes, better signposting to support services for victims, as whilst she had been interviewed with a registered intermediary there were no suggestions an ISVA was involved, and greater utilisation of forensics. Alcohol was allegedly consumed causing memory loss of the suspect but no toxicology report was mentioned in the case. The suspect also stated clearly in his account that he had not had sex in the bed so there was an opportunity to look at forensics on the bedding which had been missed. Concerns were also raised on perceptions of one vulnerability being more credible than the other.

The learning points were noted and taken away for reflective practice by the investigator. The panel agreed the case should have been referred to the CPS for EA before the NFA decision was made and therefore made the recommendation to re-open the case for an EA consultation.  

What are we doing next?

The JNAP was developed to address the fall in rape cases getting to court and to rebuild public confidence in how we respond. By publishing our aims and actions, we intended to be accountable for our work to improve performance. We hope that our concerted efforts to make improvements has gone some way in encouraging victims to come forward and report with confidence.

As the action plan has now come to the end of its timeframe, we have reviewed the progress we have made. There has been intensive work on how we investigate and prosecute rape cases, not only through the JNAP, but also through the CPS RASSO 2025 strategy and Operation Soteria culminating in the launch of the NOMs.

The NPCC and CPS have agreed that the joint ambition and collaborative working between the two organisations needs to continue, and robust governance needs to be in place to ensure we have strong joint leadership to drive forward culture change and continuous improvement. We must maintain our focus on improving our approach and handling of rape cases.  As such, we have established a new Joint Rape Improvement Group, which will have oversight of the continued alignment across Police and CPS NOMs and will focus on the following four themes: 

1. Leadership and culture. 
   We believe great leadership is about openness, integrity and accountability.  It is about enabling innovation and reform by setting the right culture and ethics for our people and giving them the right tools and strong training to create an environment where they are supported to be successful. The evaluations from Operation Soteria have highlighted the need for long term cultural transformation with a strong focus on learning, and whilst NOM products have been produced to help facilitate this shift, embedding and sustaining change will take time. We will continue to focus on and support our leaders to create the positive culture we wish to embed, emphasising reflective practice both individually and within their teams and adopting a critical thinking approach to how we investigate and prosecute rape offences.
2. Continuous improvement, embedding delivery and assurance and measuring benefits of initiatives.
   Continuously reflecting, monitoring and learning has been intrinsic to the improvements we have made so far. The JNAP refresh enabled, in consultation with stakeholders, a reprioritisation of actions to ensure the plan met its overarching aims. Operation Soteria and the significant work with   renowned academics provided specialist insight to transform the way that rape investigations and prosecutions are handled, with a focus on the suspect rather than the victim. This work has amounted to the launch of the complementary police and CPS NOMs in July 2023 and since then, both organisations have focused on ensuring the models are implemented and embedded as effectively as possible. 
   The principle of continuous improvement is at the heart of the NOMs and as they are further embedded into practice across all police forces and CPS Areas, the Joint Rape Improvement Group will ensure the two NOMs continue to stay aligned, jointly address newly identified issues, ensure we see the impact the initiatives were designed for and deliver future improvements together. We will continue to conduct thematic dives with our Home Office and CPS external Soteria Consultation Group to hold us to account and ensure products developed are rooted in subject matter expertise.
3. Innovation to develop and respond to the changing nature of sexual offences.
   Within this digital age, the method and form of sexual crimes can evolve and change with advances in technology. We have agreed that we need to have a joint structure for police and CPS to be able to respond dynamically together to the changing nature of crime. The Joint Rape Improvement Group will be the means for this discussion for sexual offences and we will use this joint space to identify and develop innovative solutions to tackle and deliver justice in new and emerging types of sexual crime.
4. Using our joint voice to positively influence wider change within the Criminal Justice System and other vulnerability portfolios.
   We are pleased with the improvements we have seen in the collaborative relationships and ways of working between police and CPS in handling rape cases over these last few years. We are cognisant that whilst we are a large part of the Criminal Justice System, we have other partner organisations within the system that can impact victim experience, case progression and justice outcomes. We will aim to use our joint voice to ensure the improvements we have seen between police and CPS can be extended to our work with other partners and influence wider change. 
   Within the JNAP, we recognised the distinct circumstances of rape in domestic abuse (DA) cases. We support the police and CPS Joint Justice Plan for DA which is taking a similar approach to the JNAP. We want to share our experience of joint working and the lessons learnt with other vulnerability portfolios, particularly those that disproportionately impact women and girls, so that we can replicate the successes we have achieved in the JNAP.

Senior Responsible Officers' reflections of the JNAP

Baljit Ubhey, Director of Strategy and Policy, Crown Prosecution Service

I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved through the police and CPS Joint National Action Plan. Those individual actions we committed to in 2021, have amounted to initiating the wider cultural change within our organisations to improve our collective response to rape. 

Our investment and concerted effort into the JNAP, leading the way for Operation Soteria, has made tangible changes through the RASSO National Operating Models. The dedication of all of those involved has turned our vision of effective joint police and CPS collaborative working into a reality, and for that I give my sincere thanks for everyone’s commitment and hard work. 

I am particularly appreciative of the leadership our people have demonstrated across all levels of policing and the CPS through the JNAP. We have welcomed constructive criticism and taken ownership of the issues each of our organisations needed to address.  We have truly worked collaboratively to provide a better public service which we exist to deliver, with our stakeholders and victim support groups providing the challenge and invaluable expertise, and our frontline practitioners feeding in with their insights, for us to identify and develop solutions together, doing our part to improve the system for victims and all those involved. 

We know we still have a lot to do to build public confidence in us and so we will continue to focus on supporting victims and improving outcomes. We make a big difference in people’s lives and recognising the enormous privilege of the work we do is important, which is why I am determined to continue driving forward our transformative work in this area. The Joint Rape Improvement Group is the next iteration of the JNAP, and we will not let momentum slow. All the good work done through the JNAP and Operation Soteria, are being implemented and embedded. Measuring the impact of these initiatives will be key to achieving the results we envisioned. We want to continue fostering the culture that allows our people to investigate and prosecute these complex and difficult cases with a relentless pursuit of justice, living by the values of our organisations to protect and serve the public and deliver independent and fair prosecutions.

Chief Constable Sarah Crew, National Police Chiefs' Council Lead for Rape and Adult Sexual Offences

I remain determined to deliver sustained transformational change in the way policing supports victims and investigates rape. Thanks to the combined dedication and passion of people from organisations including policing, the CPS, academia and the third sector, we are now starting to see the change that was so desperately needed. We see this through the last three years of the police and CPS Joint National Action Plan, and with the work of Operation Soteria and the implementation of our RASSO National Operating Models. These are great innovations born of bleak times that saw increased numbers of rape and serious sexual offences being reported at a time when less cases were going to court.  However, by taking a collaborative approach we have overcome critical challenges to our Criminal Justice System by bringing together leading academics, investigators and prosecutors in a unique coalition that worked together in a once in a lifetime opportunity to bring about lasting change, justice for victims and safer communities. However, the work is not done. This is only the start. We must not be complacent, but instead strive to continue to make measurable improvements in our response to RASSO and continue with efforts to bring perpetrators of this abhorrent crime to justice whilst giving victims the care and support they need.

I want to take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt gratitude and appreciation to everybody who has been involved in this work over the last three years. The unwavering commitment to addressing and combating this wickedest of Criminal Justice problems is commendable and truly inspiring. The tireless work in developing comprehensive strategies, devising policy changes, and providing support to survivors is a testament to the dedication and principles of public service. Their efforts have not only made a tangible difference in the lives of victim survivors but have also sent a powerful message that sexual violence will not be tolerated in our society. The dedication to holding perpetrators accountable and providing a safe environment for victims to seek justice is invaluable and I am personally grateful for the positive impact that has been made.

We are pleased with the progress we have made so far, and we are excited about what more we can achieve together. This work is making a profound difference and, whilst the JNAP comes to an end in its current form, we will continue working together to improve our combined response to RASSO. Our joint working and existing joint governance mechanisms continues with the Joint Rape Improvement Group that will focus on embedding our achievements, including the implementation of our two aligned National Operating Models. We will do this through continuous improvement and assurance, developing our leadership and culture, innovating and adapting to change, and influencing wider change.