Police in Northamptonshire are supporting a Home Office campaign, launched last week, to raise awareness of female genital mutilation (FGM).
The key message is that FGM is an unacceptable form of abuse and is illegal in the UK. It is also illegal to take a British national or permanent resident abroad for FGM or to help someone trying to do this.
Prevention is at the heart of the campaign, which calls for the safeguarding and protection of all girls and women who may be at risk of FGM, which often has severe consequences for their physical and mental health.
Detective inspector Richard Tompkins said: “Northamptonshire, in line with the rest of the country, has pockets of potentially vulnerable people from ethnic groups where FGM is practiced.
“Research strongly suggests there are people at risk in this county, and in fact Northampton featured in a recent Channel 4 Dispatches documentary about FGM.
“We have dedicated community engagement officers who are working closely with local communities to help educate, gather information and stamp out what is a barbaric practice.
“We also have an active countywide Honour Based Violence (HBV) group, chaired by the police, where members of the community come together to tackle HBV, including FGM, in Northamptonshire.”
Over the next few weeks, the force will be using Twitter to circulate the campaign’s messages with @NSPCC calls on mothers and carers to #endFGM http://tinyurl.com/lrtrtrz