Our ‘Know This’ briefings are a regular note to alert colleagues to recent discussions happening in the sectors relevant to our work. This edition is a Stalking Special Edition to coincide with National Stalking Awareness Week. The briefing is not intended to be an exhaustive list of major changes and developments in our sectors. If you see anything you think needs to be in a future bulletin, let us know at PracticeResearchUnit@interventionsalliance.co.uk and we will include it in the next edition.

  

Government policies and plans around stalking

Cracking down on sex-based harassment in public (1 April 2026) 

 A new law makes sex-based harassment in public a specific criminal offence, giving police stronger powers and introducing penalties of up to 2 years in prison to better protect women and girls. 

Read the GOV.UK news story 

Stalking legislation review: terms of reference (Updated 31 March 2026) 

The new legislation review aims to assess whether current stalking laws are clear and effective, to ensure police and courts can identify, investigate, and prosecute stalking properly, and improve outcomes and protection for victims. Ultimately, the review examines whether UK stalking laws are clear, joined-up, and fit for modern forms of abuse, with the aim of improving policing, prosecutions, and victim protection and recommending legal changes if needed. 

Read the Stalking Legislation Review 

CPS Stalking Action Plan 2026-2030 (24 March 2026)  

The Crown Prosecution Service’s (CPS) new Stalking Action Plan sets out a structured programme of work designed to improve the quality, consistency, and victim focused nature of CPS responses, alongside strengthening cross agency collaboration and improving public understanding of the CPS’s approach. Some major points in the plan include: 

• Training prosecutors and updating guidance to better handle stalking, including online and trauma-related cases  

• Improving how cases are built and handled, focusing on victims and patterns of behaviour for those perpetrating harm 

• Working more closely with police, government, and partners to strengthen investigations and responses  

• Increasing understanding of stalking’s impact on different groups, including young people  

• Providing clearer information and better support for victims throughout the justice process 

Read the CPS Stalking Action Plan 

Crime and Policing Bill: reducing violence against women and girls (VAWG) factsheet (Updated 4 February 2026) 

This Bill sets out the government’s commitment to ensuring better protection for victims of stalking. It amends the Stalking Protection Act 2019 and the Sentencing Code to enable the courts themselves to make a Stalking Protection Order (SPO) after conviction or acquittal. Currently, SPOs are only available on application from the police to a magistrates’ court. The Bill will also allow the Home Secretary to issue multi-agency statutory guidance on stalking to help ensure that support for stalking victims is effective and robustly manages perpetrators, and the process police should follow when considering whether to release identifying information to victims about stalkers.  

Read the Crime and Policing Bill: reducing violence against women and girls (VAWG) factsheet 

  

Research, reports and guidance 

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Multi-Agency Stalking Partnership: Standards for Interventions with Perpetrators of Stalking (Weir et al. 2026) 

This document outlines a set of stalking intervention standards developed through collaboration between multiple agencies in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. It addresses a gap in existing guidance by focusing specifically on stalking, rather than treating it solely within domestic abuse frameworks. The standards emphasise the unique risks and patterns of stalking and promote coordinated, psychologically informed, and safety-focused responses. They are intended to guide local practice and contribute to the development of national approaches to effective stalking interventions. 

Read the Standards for Interventions with Perpetrators of Stalking 

Cyberstalking Perpetrators and Their Methods: A Systematic Literature Review (Weekes, Storey & Pina, 2025)  

This systematic review summarises literature on the perpetration of cyberstalking with two research questions: (a) Who are the perpetrators of cyberstalking? and (b) What are the methods of cyberstalking? 80 articles were identified and rated as highly relevant based on their applicability to the research questions. The review findings highlighted precursors to, and patterns of, cyberstalking perpetration. It also found that further research is required to explore how existing “offline” stalking risk assessments and typologies can be applied to cases of cyberstalking, which would allow authorities to develop effective case management strategies.  

Read this Open Access paper while it is still free online 

Ten years on: Stalking in Kirklees policing and support for victims – Lived experience voices: Key findings report (We Are Hear, Rosie Campbell, Kate Wood & Deb Theobauld-Ho, December 2024) 

 

This report summarises insights from women with lived experience of stalking in Kirklees, highlighting stalking as a widespread, gendered, and often underreported crime, frequently linked to domestic abuse. Based on interviews and participatory research, it shows that victims experience a wide range of intrusive behaviours, both in person and online, including surveillance, persistent contact, and involvement of others. These experiences have severe and lasting impacts on mental health, relationships, finances and daily life, with many women living in fear. The report also points to gaps in criminal justice responses, including low charge rates, emphasising the need for improved recognition, stronger multi-agency support, and more effective protection for victims.  

Read the report 

Guidance for practitioners supporting victims of technology-facilitated domestic abuse (published July 2025, reviewed January 2026) 

This guidance from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) offers practical advice for practitioners to help victims of cyber-enabled domestic abuse, stalking and harassment, including control, coercion, threatening behaviour or violence.  

• Read about the Cyber domestic abuse victims practitioner guidance 

• This guidance can be requested by contacting NCSC directly on reportfraud-protectservices@cityoflondon.police.uk  (NCSC requires the request to be from your official work account and including your work signature block at the bottom)    

 In the news 

• A recent Guardian article (6 April 2026) detailing the increase in stalking offences. The article refers to police recording a nearly fifty-fold rise in stalking offences in England and Wales in the past decade, with the rise attributed to perpetrators’ use of technology to track victims 

• Another related Guardian article (7 April 2026) discusses what is driving the rise in stalking offences in more depth, citing the rise in technology facilitated stalking through, for example, “trackers hidden in cars or linked to phones without a victim’s knowledge” and also the changes in people’s awareness, “more recognition of behaviours like coercive control”.  All factors which have led to more reporting, and in some cases better investigation and prosecution.  

• Finally, a BBC article ‘He stalked me, but I was the one arrested’ (8 April 2026) details the case of Jodie Morrow, a young woman whose stalker make a claim against her for harassment. The article details Jodie’s experiences with her perpetrator, and flags issues around problematic police processes around stalking claims.  

 

TV, film and theatre 

Some of the following documentaries have been flagged in previous ‘Know This’ bulletins, but if you are interested in learning more real-life stories on this topic see: 

 

• To Catch a Stalker (BBC, 2025): Zara McDermott highlights the urgent, often ignored, issue of stalking by following four women in real-time. 

• Catching My Stalker (Channel 4, 2025): A documentary focusing on victims attempting to identify their stalkers. 

• Stacey Dooley: Stalkers (BBC, 2022): A documentary looking into the minds of stalkers and the work of specialized police units. 
  
• And finally, on the ITV News website, you can read the webpage, What is stalking and who can help you? Everything you need to know to recognise the signs, which provides information about stalking typologies, online stalking, risk factors, and processes for involving the police. Along with several short informative videos, this is a great resource and a helpful overview of stalking perpetration and stalking victimology.