Rape victims face a “postcode” lottery over whether their attackers are brought to justice, according to a report published yesterday.
Figures from the Ministry of Justice show a growing gap between police forces in England and Wales. In 16 of the 42 forces, conviction rates fell between 2006 and 2007, the study by the Fawcett Society found.
Women who report a rape are 11 times more likely to get a conviction in the courts in some areas than in others.
In Cleveland almost one in five rapes reported to police resulted in a conviction in 2007 but in Dorset fewer than one in 60 women secured a conviction for the attack.
The report compares conviction rates in 2006 with 2007 and shows that in 16 police forces there was a fall, including in Gloucestershire, Suffolk and Warwickshire.
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However, in some of the bigger urban areas of the country conviction rates increased including London, South Yorkshire, Merseyside and the West Midlands. In Cleveland the conviction rate rose from 13.3 per cent in 2006 to 18.1 per cent in 2007 and in Cumbria from 8.3 per cent to 12.3 per cent.
Twelve police force areas had a rape conviction rate of less than 5 per cent in 2007, including Essex, Cambridgeshire, Hampshire and Surrey.
Katherine Rake, director of the Fawcett Society, said: “The appalling figures in most police force areas reveal that women continue to face a postcode lottery when reporting rape to the police.
“Rape should be treated with the same professionalism as other crimes with consistency in initial response to victims and investigation across police areas.”
Ms Rake added: “Co-operation between the police and the CPS is also crucial if the prosecution of rape cases is to improve. It is a national scandal that thousands of victims have no access to justice, and frequently face a culture of disbelief and delayed responses which may lead to the loss of vital evidence.”
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Detective Chief Inspector Alastair Simpson, of Cleveland Police, said: “Cleveland Police have worked closely with partners including the Crown Prosecution Service, Primary Care Trust and voluntary sector support agencies to improve our response to victims of rape.
“Within the force we have given a number of officers specialist training to deal with victims of rape and these officers are always deployed whenever an allegation of rape is received.”
A Home Office spokesman said: “There are few crimes more horrific than rape and we know it is a uniquely difficult crime to investigate.
“We already recognise how important it is to ensure that policies are being implemented consistently in every police force which is why we announced in April a package of measures to improve the police investigation of rape and to provide further support for victims.
“The measures include helping every police force to ensure that all victims are seen by a specially trained officer within an hour of reporting a crime, better training for officers and a cross-Government group to monitor police and CPS performance on rape.”
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The spokesman said that new guidance for police on investigating and prosecuting rape would be issued shortly and an expert support team will ensure it is delivered consistently around the country.
He said Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary would lead an inspection of forces in 2010-11 to check they were complying with the guidance.