West Midlands and Staffordshire Police receive 42 reports of upskirting over the last two years
Only one of 42 reports of upskirting received by West Midlands and Staffordshire Police over the past two years has led to a charge or summons, new statistics show.
Figures obtained through a freedom of information request by RADAR show that 22 upskirting offences were recorded by West Midlands Police in 2021 and 2022, while Staffordshire Police received 20 reports.
However only one of these 42 reports had led to action being taken against the alleged offender by the time the information was requested by RADAR, which was an incident reported to West Midlands Police.
The statistics also show an increase in reports of upskirting from 2021 to 2022, with West Midlands Police seeing a rise from eight to 14, and Staffordshire seeing an increase from seven to 13.
Furthermore, staggering figures obtained by Sky News show that 1,150 upskirting crimes have been recorded since 2019, with 40 per cent of victims being children - some of which were as young as three years old.
Upskirting is a form of voyeurism where someone uses a camera or phone to take photos or videos underneath a person's clothes without their permission. It was outlawed illegal in England and Wales in 2019.
The End Violence Against Women Coalition said a focus on public awareness campaigns and school education on healthy sex and relationships is needed to tackle the crime.
Andrea Simon, director of the coalition, said: "It is vital we take this behaviour seriously, so those who do it know they will face consequences for it, but also to prevent the potential escalation of sexual offending.
"We need to think about upskirting as connected to all the other forms of harassment and abuse that women experience, it is a harmful violation in its own right and it's also connected to the fears that women have about the risk of other forms of sexual violence, and the calculations we are always making about our safety."
