Overview

• The Home Office announced a legal definition of honour-based abuse with new statutory guidance to improve identification, safeguarding and prosecutions in England and Wales.
• Training for teachers, police, social workers and healthcare workers will roll out, with the National Centre for VAWG and Public Protection working with forces to improve risk assessment, alongside a public awareness campaign and a Home Office pilot study to measure prevalence.
• Home secretary Yvette Cooper framed the move within the mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, stating there is no 'honour' in these crimes.
• Specialist groups including Karma Nirvana, along with campaigners such as Yasmin Javed and Payzee Mahmod, welcomed the plans and said clearer definitions and support could save lives.
• Police recorded 2,755 honour-based abuse allegations in England and Wales in the year to March 2024, reflecting a complex pattern of offences often concealed within family or community networks.