Four Years On, Hard Truths From the Sarah Everard Inquiry
So let me walk you through what’s come out today, because it’s both shocking and deeply frustrating. A major new report linked to the Angiolini Inquiry has just been published, and it reveals that more than a quarter of police forces in England and Wales still don’t have even the most basic policies in place for investigating sexual offences. This is happening four years after the murder of Sarah Everard — a case that was supposed to force urgent, lasting change.
According to the inquiry’s chair, Lady Elish Angiolini, there is still a huge gap between how violence against women and girls is handled compared with other national threats, like terrorism. She made it clear that while those crimes are treated with consistent funding and coordinated prevention strategies, gender-based violence simply isn’t. Until that imbalance is corrected, she argues, it cannot honestly be called a national priority.
The report retraces the horror of what happened to Sarah Everard in March 2021. She was kidnapped and murdered by Wayne Couzens — a serving police officer who had spent almost 20 years in the job and who, it’s alleged, had exposed himself multiple times in the months before the attack. Despite all the attention the case received and the promises that followed, the report says key recommendations from the inquiry’s earlier stage still haven’t been fully implemented.
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One major problem highlighted again and again is the lack of reliable national data. Forces aren’t consistently recording reports of sexual offences in public spaces, which means patterns of offending cannot be identified in time to prevent further harm. Without that information, police are essentially flying blind.
Sarah Everard’s family responded to the new findings, saying they hoped the report would finally lead to “far-reaching consequences.” They spoke about how much work still needs to be done to keep women safe and said the inquiry continues to honour Sarah’s memory by pushing for meaningful change.
The report also calls for stronger action against predatory men, not just more street lighting or personal safety advice for women. Among its new recommendations are broader Good Samaritan protections so bystanders feel more confident intervening, consistent national data-sharing, and better guidance on healthy masculinity for boys and men. There are also calls for clearer public messaging about reporting crimes like indecent exposure, which is often dismissed despite being a known predictor of more serious offences.
Families of other victims, including the aunt of Zara Aleena — murdered in 2022 by a prolific offender — say the recommendations can’t come soon enough. She stressed that her niece was “just walking home,” and that the failures highlighted in the report are part of broader cultural and operational weaknesses that leave women at risk every day.
Even today, countless women describe feeling unsafe simply moving through public spaces. That reality — four years after Sarah Everard’s death — is exactly what this report is trying to confront.
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