Almost a dozen upskirting crimes recorded in Derbyshire in the past two years, new figures show

Ten upskirting offences were recorded in the last two years by Derbyshire Constabulary. Of them, eight were in 2022 and two were in 2021.

Of the eight victims with a recorded gender, seven were female and one was male.

Upskirting is a form of voyeurism where someone uses a camera or phone to take photos or videos underneath a person's clothes without their permission which was outlawed in England and Wales in 2019.

Across England and Wales 721 upskirting crimes were recorded in 2021 and 2022 across 38 forces – 96 per cent of victims with a recorded gender were female.

For the 37 forces that provided details of how the incidents were followed up, 12 per cent of the reported crimes resulted in a charge or summons.

In Derbyshire two of the upskirting crimes led to a charge or summons at the time of the request.

Commenting on the Derbyshire figures, a spokesman for Derbyshire Constabulary said upskirting was taken seriously by the force and urged victims to report it.

He added: “It is also important that parents and carers ensure that they are speaking to the young people who are in their care to ensure that they understand that this type of behaviour is illegal – and has very serious consequences should they be found to be committing it.

“We would also urge anyone who believes they know anyone who may be committing such acts to ensure they come forward and report their concerns.”

A spokesperson for victim support charity SARSAS said upskirting was part of a spectrum of sexual violence which can be devastating and long-lasting in affecting someone’s mental and emotional health, social life and relationships.

They added: "Alongside some of the trauma symptoms caused by the act of upskirting itself, many victim-survivors also live with the fear that the images may still be out in the public domain and wonder who has and hasn’t seen them.

"This can have a further profound effect on mental health and self-esteem, stopping them from living their lives in the way they would have done before."