After Levy failings, Met officers say it needs to move away from criminalising workers

A new approach on patrol

Operation Amicus is a pilot involving two plain-clothed female officers who work with women involved in street-based sex work in north London. The Met identified a group of 80 women in the area for the initiative, which aims to improve trust and encourage reports of crime.

The officers told the BBC that every woman they had met had reported some form of abuse. They said some were reluctant to approach police because they feared being arrested or doubted officers would take their reports seriously.

One officer said women may come to see rape and sexual assault by customers as normal. The team is trying to help them make formal reports, with officers saying that being heard can encourage women to report further incidents.

Concerns about criminalisation

Sex work is legal in the UK except in Northern Ireland, but activities including soliciting in public, working together and brothel keeping are illegal. Police also use anti-social behaviour powers against street sex workers.

Supt Rob Gibbs said the new team recognised that police needed to change their approach. He said women can become caught in the criminal justice system over minor offences, which can contribute to more sex work, and described them as facing severe violence against women and girls.

Levy case exposed failings

The survivor told police about the rape while she was being arrested for allegedly breaching a community banning order. The Met did not properly engage with her and closed the case; it was reopened after the murders. She later said nobody had listened to her, and the Met and Crown Prosecution Service apologised over decisions that left Levy free.

Alice describes fear of police

A woman identified as Alice said many homeless women she knows who engage in sex work in Tottenham do not report assaults because they fear police and arrest. She said two men had attacked her in separate incidents this year.

After one assault, Alice said she feared contacting police and asked hospital doctors not to call them because she thought she would be arrested. She said the female liaison officers later reassured her they were there to support her, not to get her in trouble.