New initiative to help rape victims welcomed by Sunderland’s police

First introduced in 2021, Operation Soteria brought together 19 police forces, including Northumbria, to develop a new approach to help victims of the most serious offences, working with academics and other partners.

Following the progress made by the force and other pilot sites, the Home Secretary has announced announced that all remaining forces in England and Wales have signed up to the new initiative, which aims to put victims first.

Since joining the pilot scheme, Northumbria Police says it has seen charge rates rise.

The changes include a scheme which offers replacement mobile phones to rape victims while their devices are examined, to ensure no victim is left without a phone for more than 24 hours.

In addition, specialist roles have been introduced to “help drive forward improvement and innovation”, including a dedicated project manager.

Northumbria Police Chief Superintendent Lyn Peart, head of the force’s safeguarding department, said: “At Northumbria Police, protecting the vulnerable, including victims and survivors of rape and sexual offences, is our biggest priority.

“We recognised the importance of transforming the way we work and wanted to play an early role in helping shape national best practice, bring about meaningful change for victims and further show that rapes and serious sexual offences will not be tolerated.

“Our officers have worked together with other pilot forces and academics to fully understand the endemic issues, their causes and find sustainable solutions.

“By evaluating how we respond to such cases and looking to continually improve we can also tighten our grip on offenders, raise awareness to help prevent these types of crimes from happening and address low charge and conviction rates.

“A big part of this process is also about increasingly listening to victims of all ages, genders and backgrounds, so we can learn from them and the experiences they have had.

“Operation Soteria is already having a positive impact and we are proud to have been one of the first forces to be a part of this.”

In Greek mythology, Soteria was the goddess of safety.