The government’s Policy Statement on Women in the Criminal Justice System, published on 17 July, gives no commitment to implement the Women’s Justice Board’s (WJB) recommendations for reducing women’s imprisonment, published in March.

An investigation into MI5’s use of false evidence, in court proceedings concerning an agent with a history of violence against women, has published its findings today.  

We welcome the decision to grant a posthumous conditional pardon to Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be executed by the British state just over 70 years ago.

The Government has publicly acknowledged, for the first time, that the woman at the heart of a high-profile case against MI5 was a victim of 'abhorrent’ domestic abuse by a serving MI5 agent, following BBC reporting this week on a secret inspection report disclosed to CWJ and the BBC in legal proceedings.

‘Amber’, a survivor who was raped and sexually exploited by Shabir Ahmed and later brought a successful claim against Greater Manchester Police, has condemned the failure to tell her he was due to be released from prison.

Individuals who kill their partner or ex-partner in the home may become subject to a higher baseline starting point for sentencing, under new plans announced on 29 June by the Ministry of Justice.  

Stacey Hyde’s case will be featured in the new Channel 4 series The Accused: Beyond Reasonable Doubt, airing at 10pm on Thursday 25 June. The episode tells the story of Stacey, who was just 17 when, in 2009, she stabbed and killed Vince Francis during a violent incident in which she said she was acting in defence of herself and her friend. She was convicted of murder in March 2010.

In a new research report, ‘They don’t understand abuse’, CWJ presents insights from survivors of violence against women and girls (VAWG) and women’s specialist services about police and prosecution practice when survivors are accused of offending, and recommends reforms.

Lisa Ellwood is serving a life sentence for murder – after a life marked by abuse, severe mental ill-health, and a trial in which the jury were denied the benefit of  psychological opinion evidence.  Her appeal will be heard on 26 June 2026.

ITV’s four‑part drama Believe Me, which airs from 10 May, is the true crime story of the legal battle fought by two survivors of serial rapist taxi driver, John Worboys to hold the police accountable for the failures in their investigation which led to well over 100 women being attacked before he was brought to justice.