Care for both victim-survivors and police investigators of rape and serious sexual offences in England and Wales

Abstract

‘Care’ in a policing context naturally focuses on supporting victim-survivors. The aim of this article is to consider care for police officers who have regular exposure to rape and serious sexual offences cases and officer gender roles. We consider the care provided to (predominantly) female victim-survivors of rape and serious sexual offences by both male and female police officers and differences by gender in how officers support their own wellbeing. The overall findings, based on a cross-sectional survey, interviews and focus groups in five police forces in England and Wales, suggest that officers’ perceptions of their ability to cope and wellbeing are affected differently by gender. The quantitative findings suggest that rape and serious sexual offences officers have high levels of emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and burnout, but female officers are better at prioritising wellbeing than their male counterparts. This research recommends equipping officers through specialist rape and serious sexual offences training that recognises ‘care’ as a necessary component of policing.