Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy - 2026 to 2028
“Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) is a deeply rooted societal issue that demands urgent, coordinated and sustained action. VAWG is a strategic national threat, which has a devastating and long-term impact on the public (disproportionately so on women and girls). In order to quantify the scale of the problem and provide context, Hertfordshire’s female population makes up 51% of the total number of residents, which is around 600,000+ women and girls (2021 census), and between the 1 April 2021 and the 30 March 2025, Hertfordshire Police recorded 113759 crimes which fall under the classification of VAWG.
"For policing, VAWG is high harm and high volume, and as offending methods become increasingly complex, many cases require specialist skills to respond. As the volume continues to grow, we welcome increased reporting as that allows us to have a greater understanding of the threat and its scale and demonstrates confidence in our response to victims.
"Hertfordshire Constabulary recognises the profound and lasting impact VAWG has on individuals, families, and communities and we are resolute in our commitment to addressing this harm through targeted prevention, robust enforcement, and meaningful community engagement.
"Building on the national framework, our strategy is tailored to the specific needs of our communities. We are committed to listening to women and girls, understanding their lived experiences and adapting our practices to rebuild trust and confidence in policing. This includes confronting systemic issues that have historically undermined public confidence, particularly among underrepresented and vulnerable groups.
"We acknowledge that tackling VAWG is a collective responsibility which is why Partnerships are at the heart of our new strategy. We will continue to work closely with local authorities, safeguarding boards, community organisations, and the criminal justice system to ensure our actions are informed, inclusive, and impactful. By strengthening these relationships and engaging with the communities we serve, we aim to create a safer, more equitable Hertfordshire for all women and girls.”
Nick Caveney, Assistant Chief Constable
“When people need help, it is often at one of the most frightening and vulnerable moments of their lives. When facing this we want the police to be ready to respond not only quickly and proportionately but with humanity and compassion. No one should feel alone or uncertain about what will happen next. Everyone deserves to know what support is available to them, what steps will follow and that their safety and dignity are a priority.
"When the police get involved, it is almost always because someone has been harmed or is at risk of harm. That understanding sits at the centre of our work. Together, we strive to shape the policies, procedures, training and safeguards that determine how victims and survivors are treated. By closely examining current and past interventions and by learning from the dedicated work of specialist teams such as the Beacon Safeguarding Team, we aim to highlight best practice while also identifying where improvements are required.
"Our aim is simple - to ensure that everyone who needs protection is treated with dignity and receives care, respect and the action to keep them safe. This is the right thing to do and will encourage other victims and survivors to find the bravery to come forward, while also sending a clear message to perpetrators that their abuse will not be tolerated.
"The constabulary’s VAWG Independent Advisory Group (IAG) is made up of volunteers from the public, many of whom have lived experiences. We meet regularly to review cases, share lessons learnt and ask questions of those at the forefront of policing. Our challenging conversations have helped to inform this strategy, as well as policing policies and processes that safeguard victims or survivors.
"While progress has been made, we all acknowledge that more work needs to be done and this journey continues. Members of the VAWG IAG and the policing colleagues we work alongside are passionate about this work and we will continue to use our voices to facilitate positive change through honest conversations about what isn’t working for victims and survivors and what could be improved."
Natasha P, Hertfordshire Constabulary VAWG Independent Advisory Group Co-Chai
- We have the right governance in place to enable us to improve our response to VAWG
- We recognise children as victims of domestic abuse in their own right
- We take a victim centred approach to our investigations, ensuring excellent victim care
- We listen and respond to our victims, communities and advisory groups
- We relentlessly pursue perpetrators to prevent further harm
- We promote and develop a healthy culture, where everyone is treated fairly and with respect
- We take a data informed approach in understanding and responding to VAWG
- We work robustly to root out officers and staff who act inappropriately and outside our values
- We encourage bystanders to act and report incidents of VAWG
- We ensure we have the right capacity and capabilities to respond to VAWG effectively
We recognise children as victims of domestic abuse within their own right.
The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 marked a significant change in how the law recognises children affected by domestic abuse, with children recognised as victims of domestic abuse in their own right if they:
- See or hear abuse, or
- Experience the effects of the abuse between adults in their household.
In order to break the cycle of abuse and acknowledge the traumatic impact of domestic abuse on children we will ensure earlier risk identification, tailored safeguarding and improved long-term support for young people our promise will ensure that:
- We do not consider children only as witnesses.
- We consider their needs and experiences, understanding the voice of the child and recording it appropriately
- We are professionally curious in our approach to considering the impact on children
- We consider children within safeguarding plans and ongoing victim support
- We will continue to learn and develop to ensure we are equipped with knowledge and resources to support child victims of DA and VAWG to the best of our ability.
Prepare
Objectives
- Enhance workforce professionalism
- Develop knowledge and understanding
- Ensure a data and intelligence driven approach
- Implement governances and enhance the whole system approach
Prevent
Objectives
- Our commitment to tackle VAWG is demonstrated clearly in our actions
- Develop a positive culture to support primary prevention
- Improve targeted tertiary prevention through partnerships and information sharing
Protect
Objectives
- Enhance our victim centred approach
- Improved response to vulnerabilities
- Recognition of children as victims of domestic abuse in their own right
- Utilise a range of tools to protect victims and target offenders
Pursue
Objectives
- Strengthen investigative approaches and robustly gather evidence
- Seek procedural justice
- for victims
- Continue our robust approach to Police conduct matters
- Focus on proactively identifying perpetrators and harmful behaviours
Actions will be informed and developed by a range of strategic plans, frameworks and policies ensuring consistency and transparency with overarching public priorities.
Key frameworks include PEEL (Police Effectiveness Efficiency and Legitimacy 2023-2025), JTAI (Hertfordshire Joint Target Area Inspection: children who are victims of domestic abuse plan 2024), Domestic Abuse Commission report 2022-2023, Police and Crime Commissioner Police and Crime Plan 2025-2029 and the VAWG Self Assessment, College of Policing.
Frameworks for performance are not restricted to these measures, and further internal and external reports may also inform and guide actions to achieve our objectives under the four-pillar approach, such as Domestic Abuse Related Death Reviews (DARDRs previously known as Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs)).
Adopt evidence-based practices and regularly evaluate the effectiveness of implemented measures.
- Embed VAWG as top policing and strategic priority.
- Assignment of roles and responsibilities to ensure accountability.
- Governance through strategic leads is monitored through Constabulary VAWG Delivery Plan meetings.
- Effective collaboration with partners though relevant partnership boards will ensure strategy activity is aligned.
- Independent oversight achieved by involving VAWG specialists and victims with lived experience in scrutinising police performance and reviewing internal practices.
- The VAWG Delivery Plan will outline individual KPIs to measure success / regular audits and reviews to assess the impact of implemented measures.
- Feedback from victims and survivors will be systematically integrated into strategic planning processes, including business and development plans. This will be a continuous process, ensuring that their voices remain central to ongoing service improvement and organisational development.
- Improve outcomes within VAWG investigations - through a multi faceted approach, encompassing support for victims, increased accountability for perpetrators, and preventative measures.
- Build trust and confidence, improving victim satisfaction and reducing victim attrition.
- Effective use of Police Powers to protect women and girls.
We recognise that to make real change, effective partnership working is essential in achieving a whole system approach to tackling the complex and multi dimensional issues of VAWG.
While we work in partnership with a range of organisations, our core partnerships in addressing VAWG are with Beacon and Chrysalis.
Beacon is Hertfordshire’s Victim Care Centre and is staffed by professionals from both Hertfordshire Constabulary and Catch 22, an independent organisation commissioned to support victims of crime in Hertfordshire.
The Chrysalis Centre is a pioneering intervention programme established across Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. It is supported through partnership between Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire Police and Crime commissioners, County Councils, Integrated Care Boards the National Probation Service.
- Criminal Justice System: Collaborate with CPS and the judiciary to enhance case outcomes and ensure perpetrators face justice.
- Safeguarding Boards: Jointly address cases involving vulnerable individuals and ensure timely interventions.
- Local Councils: Work on urban planning, community safety initiatives, and resource allocation.
- Community Organisations: Engage with grassroots groups and charities, to reach underrepresented communities and build trust.
- VAWG IAG: By establishing trusted relationships and effective processes for feedback we work in partnership with survivors of domestic abuse and VAWG to strengthen and enhance our services.
In an emergency, call 999.
If it's not an emergency, please report it to us by calling 101 or report online via our website. Our online form will ask you to tell us details about what has happened, and your report will be sent direct to our control room.
For those with hearing or speech impairments, if you’ve pre-registered with the emergency SMS service, use our textphone service 18000 or text us on 999 or Call 999 BSL to use a British Sign Language interpreter.
If you report domestic violence, your report will go to our 24/7 contact centre and be reviewed.