AVON and Somerset Police have have pledged their support to the National Ugly Mugs (NUM) scheme which helps sex workers access justice and protect themselves from dangerous criminals.

The constabulary, alongside other police forces in the UK, are working with NUM to build an intelligence picture about dangerous sexual predators who often use sex workers as ‘test’ victims, believing that they won’t report what’s happened to the police.

These offenders then go on to commit further crimes against sex workers and sometimes others in the wider community.

Because sex workers are often unwilling to tell the police about crimes committed against them, there is a gap in intelligence which has a huge consequence for the safety of the wider public.

NUM fills these gaps by sharing anonymous intelligence, when consent is given, with police forces across the UK and the Serious Crimes Analysis Section (SCAS), acting as a mediator between the victim and the police.

Chief Inspector Marie Wright who is the force lead for prostitution said: “The National Ugly Mugs scheme is a vital tool in helping us to keep sex workers safe. We know that dangerous criminals often target these vulnerable women, with the knowledge that they are unlikely to go to the police.

"This scheme allows us and other police forces to help these women who can be hard to reach from a police perspective, due to the underreporting of crimes committed against them.

“This scheme, which can help us to protect these women and encourage them to access the justice they are entitled to, is a great way for us to bridge that gap."

Alex Feis-Bryce, chief executive of NUM, said: “We are delighted that Avon and Somerset Police has pledged their support to us for 2015–16.

"NUM is a life-saving project supporting some of the most marginalised people in society, who often don’t have the same access to public protection as the rest of us.

"Without our services, police forces would know nothing about the vast majority of the offenders who target sex workers, which has implications for the whole of society.

"This sends a strong message that crimes against sex workers will be taken very seriously and Avon and Somerset Police will do their utmost to bring these dangerous offenders, who are a danger to us all, to justice.”

NUM is formally supported by the Association of Chief Police Forces and the Chief Constables Council and its work, in three years, has resulted in a number of serial sex offenders being caught.

In 2014, NUM won a number of awards including the Guardian Charity Award and the Third Sector Award for ‘Small Charity, Big Achiever’.

In 2015, they have been shortlisted for the Charity Times Charity of the Year Award.