Home Office publishes new guidance on stalking

What has the Home Office promised?

There will be new ‘Right to Know” statutory guidance, enabling police to release the identity of an online stalker at the earliest opportunity. This will be done though a process of disclosure, allowing police to share this information with the victim.

• There will also be a review of the current stalking legislation, to ascertain whether more support can be made available to police to assist with identifying stalking and arresting perpetrators.
• It is proposed that stalking will be defined within statutory guidance and frameworks to help support services, including police, education, and health services to collaborate with one another to better protect victims of stalking.
• A national standard on stalking perpetrator programmes will be published to ensure consistency throughout England and Wales.
• The Home Office will publish data on stalking offences to inform policy and policing decisions.

What about Stalking Protection Orders?

Stalking Protection Orders (SPOs) are to become more widely available, by enabling the courts to issue SPOs upon a conviction or acquittal, if there is enough evidence to show that an order is necessary to protect the victim.

At present, SPO’s can only be applied for by the police under the Stalking Protection Act 2019. The application needs to be made by the police force in the area where the perpetrator resides or where the perpetrator is intending to reside.

For a court to grant a SPO it needs to be satisfied that:

• The perpetrator has carried out acts associated with stalking.
• They pose a risk, associated with stalking, to another person, and
• There is reasonable cause to believe the proposed order is necessary to protect another person from such a risk.

How can Weightmans assist?

SPOs’ are an effective tool in protecting victims.

Weightmans has successfully obtained hundreds of SPO’s for police forces across the country often tailored to the individual needs of the victims in question, including:

• Prohibiting contact with the victim directly or indirectly, including in person, calls, messages and social media.
• Prohibiting perpetrators from attending certain locations.
• Banning access to social networking sites or joining any organisation online under a false name and/or date of birth.
• Prohibiting surveillance of the victim or inciting another person to do so; including following them, recording any images, and attending or waiting outside any place of work or education.
• Compel the perpetrator to provide police with details of their vehicle (make, model, colour, and registration) and details of any vehicle they are insured to drive.
• Prevent the forming of any intimate relationship without notifying the police at the commencement of the relationship.
• Require the wearing of a Buddi tag.
• Require engagement in an intervention programme to address stalking behaviours.