Super-complaint: Police response to reports of stalking
In November 2022, the Suzy Lamplugh Trust submitted a super-complaint on behalf of the National Stalking Consortium, on the police response to stalking.
The IOPC led a joint investigation into this complaint with His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Service (HMICFRS) and the College of Policing.
On 27 September we published our joint investigation report with HMICFRS and College of Policing which makes 29 recommendations to ensure better support for victims.
The investigation found that significant changes are needed to improve the police response to reports of stalking, an investigation into a police super-complaint has found.
These include:
- outlining steps chief constables should take now to improve the quality of stalking investigations
- changing the criminal law on stalking
- making stalking protection orders simpler and easier for the police to use
- ensuring police and support services work more closely together to improve the service provided to victims
We would like to thank all the victims and support services who shared their experiences. It is now up to the police to listen to what they have to say and ensure the issues they highlight are urgently addressed.
About super-complaints
The police super-complaints system is designed to consider complaints about systemic issues in policing. Only organisations that are designated by the Home Secretary can make a super-complaint – this includes the Suzy Lamplugh Trust.
Information about the super-complaints system and previous super complaints can be found on the gov.uk website.
Information on stalking
Stalking is illegal and can include being followed or repeatedly harassed by another person, including online. Advice on reporting stalking and organisations you can contact for support and advice is available on the gov.uk website.