Rapes in Fordingbridge expose a system stacked against survivors

Our thoughts and solidarity are with the girls subjected to rape in Fordingbridge. The harm done to them has been compounded by the boys’ decision to film and share videos of the rapes online. This week (26th May 2026), the Attorney General referred the sentence handed down by the judge to the Court of Appeal for review.

Sexual violence devastates victims’ lives, and its impacts ripple out across communities, creating a source of heightened fear for women and girls trying to go about their daily lives. It is crushing to hear the impact of this appalling violence on the victims, who feel let down, unseen, unheard and unable to leave their homes. This experience is far too common. It should continue to disturb and enrage us.

It is a confronting and uncomfortable truth that the criminal justice system does not often deliver justice or rehabilitation. Every day, victims of rape and sexual violence come forward to report what happened to them, only to be failed by the police, prosecutors and courts in a system that is stacked against them. To relive their pain and trauma without resolution. This is unacceptable. Women and girls deserve better.

Women and girls also deserve a world in which this violence is prevented, rather than treated as inevitable. We need investment and ambition across the whole of society to understand what is driving violence against women and girls, and how we can stop it.

Perpetrators must be held accountable and we must continue to challenge and change our society that raises boys and young men who set out to plan and execute such appalling violence as a group. We must look at how society is enabling and normalising violence against women and girls – with survivors’ credibility put under the microscope while men and boys’ behaviour is minimised and excused. We must also ensure that tech companies are scrutinised for their role in promoting and profiting from horrific misogyny and abuse, which is shaping attitudes and behaviours across society.

We need proper investment in prevention, including education in schools and across our communities to promote gender equality, consent and healthy relationships, and funding for specialist support services – not least because so many women and girls do not or cannot report the sexual violence they are subjected to.

EVAW and our partners have long advocated for the rights of survivors of sexual violence – from our legal challenge against Crown Prosecution Service to our joint campaign to keep survivors’ counselling notes confidential and stop their previous disclosures from being used against them in court. As cases like this show, there is so much more work to do together.

All victims and survivors deserve safety and specialist support. We know that when systems fail, it is VAWG services that step in to provide the advice and advocacy and the emotional and practical support which enables women and girls to rebuild their lives. In situations like these, specialist services provide a lifeline.

If you have been affected by sexual violence or any form of violence against women and girls, help is available. Contact Rape Crisis for free at any time, day or night, all year round on 0808 500 2222, or click here to find a local specialist service in your area.

ENDS