Are sexual offences still a problem in the UK?
Rape is a crime of power, aggression and control in which a person is forced or manipulated into sexual intercourse without their consent. Sexual assault includes sexual harassment and/or unwanted sexual contact.
According to latest figures, this year Rape Crisis England and Wales has responded to their highest ever number of helpline calls — a total of 202,666.
Rape Crisis centres have provided more than 450,000 sessions of specialist support, including advocacy, emotional support and counselling — an increase of almost a third on figures between 2015 and 2016.
Previous statistics from An Overview of Sexual Offending in England and Wales published by the Ministry of Justice, Office for National Statistics and Home Office in January 2013, showed nearly half a million adults were sexually assaulted in England and Wales each year.
Another report, The Crime Survey for England and Wales, concludes that 2% of adults aged 16–59 have been victims of sexual assaults in the last year, an increase on the previous figure of 1.7 per cent.
Although this small rise may not appear significant, it is of concern that there has not been any decline. It shows that rape is still a problem in the UK.
