READING has been flagged up as a hotspot for female genital mutilation (FGM).

The shocking announcement came from the Department of Health (DoH) last week when it instructed hospitals to begin recording the number of women treated for FGM to try to discover how many are subjected to the illegal practice.

But despite the Royal Berkshire Hospital not tracking women who have undergone it, Reading has been listed by the DoH as one of 11 FGM hotspots, ranked alongside cities such as London, Birmingham and Manchester.

Health bosses were baffled by the town’s inclusion in the list and borough council spokeswoman Anna Fowler said: “Health service partners throughout Reading are working together to establish if there is a local problem around FGM in the borough.

“We would urge anyone who feels at risk of FGM or is experiencing problems related to FGM to contact their GP in the first instance.”

But DoH spokesman Tom Fairchild stressed the hotspots were identified by whether the area has a high number of maternity admittances of women from countries associated with FGM. He added: “Those areas with a greater than 2% proportion of admittances of women from FGM countries are deemed hotspots, including Reading.”

From Tuesday all hospitals are required to record the number of women who have undergone FGM, whether they have a family history of the operation and if a patient has had any treatment relating to FGM. The findings will be reported to the DoH every month and the number of victims will be published in the autumn.

UNICEF reports that FGM - partial or total removal of external female genitalia - is practised as a cultural ritual in 27 countries in Africa, including Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan, as well as parts of Asia and the Middle East.