Bedfordshire police to hold webinar on stalking today as government announces plans to better support victims

And since the start of the 16 Days of Action campaign on November 25 a total of 60 people have been arrested.

Yesterday (Tuesday), the government announced plans to give greater protection to victims of stalking and harassment. The changes will mean victims have the right to know who their stalker is, as well as a full review of the current stalking legislation.

This year Bedfordshire Police introduced the Stalking Prevention & Intervention Unit (SPIU), a team which reviews all cases where stalking is involved, and supports victims through the investigation.

Since the start of the year, officers have secured more than 150 charges against individuals and made 215 stalking-related arrests.

One of the government changes is the implementation of Stalking Protection Orders at the earliest available opportunity, ensuring perpetrators are unable to contact victims from behind bars.

In Bedfordshire, officers have already doubled the number of Stalking Protection Orders issued since last year.

Detective Superintendent, Emma Pitts, who leads the force’s response to domestic abuse, said: “In Bedfordshire, we understand the vast mental and physical impact stalking has on victims, the risk perpetrators pose and how behaviours can rapidly escalate.

“We are working hard to ensure we always get the best possible outcome for our victims, supporting them from the earliest opportunity and driving a whole system approach.

“We are also relentlessly pursing perpetrators, and ensuring we are using all powers and policies such as Stalking Protection Orders to protect people. In the last week alone we have secured four stalking charges.

“We welcome the government’s commitment to tackling stalking and we will continue to drive positive change, increase education on tools and support, and work with partners to better support victims and drive change.”

Police and Crime Commissioner John Tizard said “In the last year, the solved rate of crimes related to domestic abuse has increased by six per cent and I acknowledge the relentless efforts of Bedfordshire Police and partners, who are actively working to pursue perpetrators, enhancing support for victims and increase public confidence in reporting such crimes.

“However, more must be done.

“It is also essential to recognise that tackling these appalling offences requires much more than policing. There must be robust and ideally a single multi-agency safeguarding data hub to assist this approach.

“One of the most vital aspects of this approach is the education of young people, particularly boys and men.

“My office funds education and counselling services, and Independent Sexual Violence Advisors (ISVA’s), Independent Domestic Violence Advisors (IDVA’s) for women affected by sexual violence and domestic abuse.

“Men can be victims of violence too and there are funds to provide specialist services to provide support to male victims.

“However, we cannot overlook the fact that these are crimes predominantly committed by men against women. As a society we simply must stop making excuses for poor behaviours and attitudes towards women and girls. Misogyny has no place in 2024.”

Deputy PCC, Umme Ali has lead responsibility for this mission, and is working with our public sector partners, women’s groups, specialist voluntary and community organisations and people with lived experience.

Bedfordshire Police will host a live webinar from 6pm today (Wednesday) with officers from the Stalking Prevention & Intervention Unit (SPIU) and Victim Engagement Officers to openly discuss the topic of stalking and to highlight the support available.

Home Office figures show 7,993 domestic abuse-related crimes were recorded by Bedfordshire Police in the year to March – up slightly from 7,913 the year before. Of these crimes, 8% resulted in a charge or summons.

The figures also show there have been 353 domestic homicide victims between the years ending March 2021 and March 2023, including four recorded by Bedfordshire Police.

Of the victims, 231 were women (65%).

The Victims’ Commissioner has launched the annual Victims’ Survey – which you can fill out online here. It seeks feedback from about people’s experiences of the criminal justice system in England and Wales.