00:00Just 10 days ago, West Midlands Police made violence against women and girls an official policing priority in Birmingham's city
00:09centre,
00:09saying officers will target predatory offenders and work to make women feel safer.
00:15It comes against a troubling backdrop.
00:19Figures published last year showed reports of rape and sexual assault against women across the West Midlands
00:25had risen by 143% since 2020.
00:31More than 59,000 women also reported harassment during that period,
00:36but just 1,720 cases resulted in a charge.
00:42Birmingham's own safety strategy says almost 22,000 offences
00:48classed as violence against women and girls were recorded in 2024,
00:53while sexual offences rose by 9%.
00:56But the wider picture is more complicated.
01:01Overall offences classed as violence against women and girls in Birmingham
01:05actually fell by 13% that year.
01:09And West Midlands Police says it's charged more than 1,000 suspects with rape or sexual assault
01:14in the three years to April.
01:16With women's safety now a specific city centre policing priority,
01:21the question is, do women feel safe when they're out on the streets in Britain's second largest city?
