One in 20 women has been raped

The Home Office revealed yesterday that 167 women are raped in England and Wales every day and that one in 20 of the adult female population is a rape victim.

The findings were published in the most extensive study carried out in Britain of sexual victimisation of women. It showed that about 754,000 women in England and Wales have been raped.

The Home Office research, based on interviews with 7,000 women over the age of 16, destroys the common view that rape is an offence carried out by strangers in public places and provides a disturbing insight into the level of sexual offending within relationships. It found that 45 per cent of rapes were perpetrated by the victim's current partner, compared to 8 per cent by strangers. The survey found that 55 per cent of attacks took place in the victim's home and that rapes by partners were more violent than those by strangers.

The Home Office minister John Denham said: "The publication of the new research dispels some of the myths about rape and sexual victimisation, especially the stereotype of the majority of rapes being committed by strangers in public places." Describing rape as "an abhorrent crime", he announced a 13-point government action plan for increasing the proportion of rape cases that end in conviction from the current level of one in 13.

Lord Goldsmith, the Attorney General, said: "The Government is setting out a range of actions that will improve the investigation and prosecution of rape. Prosecuting rape poses special challenges ... because a high percentage of offenders are known to the victim and there is rarely any independent eyewitness evidence."

The Home Office research was carried out as part of the British Crime Survey, a random survey of households that includes offences not reported to the police, and is believed to give the most comprehensive picture of criminal activity.

Teenagers are most at risk of rape, with women aged between 16-19 almost four times as likely to be attacked as older females.

Women from poorer backgrounds are especially vulnerable, with those from households with an annual income of under £10,000 three times more likely to be raped than women from homes where income is more than £20,000.

The researchers examined 1,183 incidents of rape or sexual assault reported by the women and found that 56 per cent of attacks were committed by current or former partners, 21 per cent by "dates" or other intimates and 16 per cent by acquaintances.

The authors said: "Attacks by partners are more than twice as likely to result in a physical injury (39 per cent) as attacks by strangers (19 per cent)."

Kate Mulley, policy manager at Victim Support, said the "frightening" research had made an important link between sexual attacks and domestic violence. She said: "It is not just about people being dragged down dark alleys by strangers, it's about people that you know."

The research indicated that 61,000 women were raped in the year preceding the British Crime Survey 2000. But police figures recorded only 7,707.

The government action plan announced yesterday includes new training for police to ensure they treat victims correctly and properly collect scientific evidence, and the setting up of a team of specialist rape prosecutors across the country.

The study did not interview homeless or institutionalised women and interviews were not always conducted in private.