Serious Violence Reduction Orders independent evaluation report

This report presents the independent final evaluation of the SVRO pilot.

SVROs were introduced through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Court Act 2022. The Act required SVROs to be piloted before any decision on wider national roll out to ensure that only impactful policy changes are implemented.

The SVROs pilot was delivered across 4 police force areas - Merseyside, Sussex, Thames Valley and West Midlands between 19 April 2023 and 18 April 2025.

The evaluation examines the effect of SVROs on reoffending rates, the implementation process and whether the application of SVROs is associated with any ethnic disproportionality. This final report presents the evaluation's findings.

Over the 2-year period, 463 SVROs were issued to individuals convicted of qualifying offences involving weapons with an increase in any reoffending and possession of weapons reoffending observed in the SVRO cohort.