Defined under the Sexual Offence Act, consent to sexual activity can only occur if the other person agrees by choice and has the freedom and capacity to make that choice and the person can withdraw consent, at any time. The police will aim to establish what steps were taken to gain consent. At trial the prosecution has to prove beyond reasonable doubt, that the complainant did not consent; that the defendant did not genuinely believe that the complainant was consenting and that if they did, or may have done, then that belief was not a reasonable one to hold. If the complainant was under the age of 16 at the time of the incident, and the defendant knew this, then, consent is not a defence.