Record numbers of sexual offences reported in London

A record number of reported rapes and sexual assaults in London will push the court system to "breaking point", a victims commissioner has said.

Last year 7,500 women reported a sexual assault to the Met Police, the highest figure for a decade, new Home Office data reveals.

The number of reported sexual assaults against males aged 13 and over saw a 59% increase, to 924 cases.

London's victim's commissioner called the rise "deeply concerning".

"Particularly at a time when there are record backlogs in the courts," Claire Waxman said.

New figures show that 9,245 rapes were reported to the Met in the 12 months to March - a 24% increase on the previous year.

This means there were more rapes recorded last year than at any point in the last 10 years.

The total recorded reports of sexual offences - a broad crime category that includes rape, sexual assault and sexual abuse - received by the Met Police increased by 34%.

Across England and Wales there has been a 32% increase in reports of sexual offences last year.

The increase follows a number of high-profile cases of sexual violence, like the rape and murder of Sarah Everard and the "sexually motivated" murder of Sabina Nessa.

Despite the record increase in the number of offences being reported, the real total is believed to be much higher.

Serious sexual offences are taking the longest time on record to go through Crown Courts in England and Wales.

A BBC investigation found the average case length for sexual offences was nine months.

Ms Waxman said: "The Government has chronically underfunded the criminal justice system for over a decade and the courts are now struggling to function with the impact of the pandemic and industrial action.

"The system is at breaking point."

For the year ending September 2021, just 1.3% of rape offences have led to a charge or further court proceedings.

A Met Police spokesperson said: "We know sexual offences have been underreported in the past and we have been working hard to increase reports to the Met in order for us to investigate.

"The public is rightly less tolerant of these crimes and are speaking out."

"We continue to encourage anyone who has been a victim of sexual assault to report it police, you will be supported and any crimes will be fully investigated."

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