The first prosecution for female genital mutilation is expected to go ahead within weeks after a concerted drive to end Britain’s “shameful” record over the crime.

The case, involving an adult woman who was mutilated twice, will be the first to reach the courts since the practice was criminalised 28 years ago. However, a senior police officer warned that the prospect of more prosecutions was being hampered by the failure of doctors, teachers and social workers to report the crime.