239 perpetrators of violence against women and girls arrested since September under new law

Detective Superintendent Lindsay Fisher said: “This year’s theme is ‘Embrace Equity’, we stand in solidarity with those in our society committed to ensuring women and girls feel equally safe.”

Coercive control domestic abuse and stalking both became criminal offences under new legislation for the North in 2022.

Since the launch of the Service’s action plan last September officers have targeted and arrested 239 perpetrators of these crimes against women and girls.

Det. Supt. Fisher added: “We are proactively tracking reports of violence, abuse and intimidation against women and girls and targeting neighbourhood policing resources to locations where they have reported feeling unsafe. We want to have a deterring presence in these areas.

“A total of 6,500 officers and staff have also undergone revised training on domestic abuse, encompassing coercive control and 4,000 are now trained to recognise and respond to stalking.

“We are using every power available to us and sending a strong message to perpetrators, that we are actively pursuing you and we won’t stop. This activity is firmly embedded into our business as usual and we want to see reporting figures and outcome rates continue to increase as a result.”

The force has also rolled out the ‘Ask for Angela’ system to bars, clubs and other licensed businesses with nearly 300 signed up.

This allows someone who is feeling uncomfortable on a date or who feels unsafe within a venue to alert staff by asking for ‘Angela’.