Under the framework of the UN Joint Global Programme on Essential Services, UN Women, together with UNODC and the IAWP, developed this handbook on gender-responsive police services to address the need for a strengthened justice sector response to violence against women and girls. The handbook is based on and complements existing global and country-specific handbooks and training materials for law enforcement. It covers areas such as prevention of violence against women and girls, gender-responsive police investigations, survivor- centred approaches, and institutional transformation within an often-complex justice system. It also provides guidance on responding to violence against women and girls during a crisis, including a pandemic.