IF YOU THINK YOU ARE BEING STALKED;

Contact the local police, if you have not already done so. Ask for the name of the Officer in charge of the case, also record the crime reference number if applicable.

Keep a LIST of useful telephone numbers by your phone. Ask a friend or neighbour if they can be another contact for the police. This will be helpful in a situation if you are stressed or traumatised, your friend/neighbour can talk to the police and get details if you feel you cannot cope at that time.

Inform friends, neighbours and colleagues of what is happening, they can also keep a record of sightings and suspicious incidents for you, as well as supporting and protecting you (eg; screening phone calls for you).

Keep a diary of what happens, how you are feeling etc..... This will not only help you, but may assist the police in their investigation.

Record ANY incident you are suspicious of:

telephone calls - if you are at all suspicious, remain calm and try not to show any emotion, put the handset to one side then leave for a few minutes ­ it is their money they are wasting - then return and replace the handset. Record the date and time of the call as well as the details, try dialling 1471 for the caller's number.

sightings ­ record the date, time, location, a description of clothing they are wearing and anything they may be carrying and what they are doing.

cars ­ if you are aware of a particular car, record the date, time, location, make and model of car, colour, registration number and any other distinguishing features.

mail ­ if you are wary of any mail that is delivered to you either give it straight to the police without opening it, or if you feel the need to know what is inside put gloves on so you do not put your fingerprints on it, even a couple of freezer bags on your hands will do! DO NOT LET ANYONE ELSE TOUCH IT, even though others may want a look.

Contact your telephone company's Malicious Calls Section for advice.

If you have access to a camera or video camera, record on film anything you can this will be very useful evidence of what is happening, location and frequency of the incidents.

Carry a mobile phone with you, as well as a personal attack alarm. It will help you feel more comfortable when you go out.

Try to show no emotion to your stalker (this may be hard), do not confront or agree to meet with them. If you do come into contact, aim to get away ideally to a busy place.

Rely on your instinct, it does work. If you ever feel in imminent danger do not hesitate to call 999.

Consider improvements to your home security.

Driving when you are being stalked can be quite a traumatic experience; not only do you have to concentrate on driving with due care and attention, your mind and eyes are aware of every suspicious car or pedestrian. To reduce the stress of this:

Have a notepad and pen handy so that, if your stalker is seen, at the next available safe opportunity, note down details, location, description of person, vehicle details, especially the registration number/make of car. If necessary, call the police

If you are in heavy traffic,try not to get too close to the car in front of you. THis will leave enough room for manoeuvre should you need to get out of the queue.

If you believe the stalker is following you in a vehicle, do not put yourself and others at risk by driving erratically. If an opportunity arises safely slow down so that they have to go past you. You have then taken control of the situation.

Alternatively, drive to the nearest police station/court house to seek assistance. If you feel in imminent physical danger, stop at the nearest location likely to have a phone and dial 999. You may feel self-conscious about doing this, but it may save your life.

Reducing the availability of your details

These days, the amount of information in the public domain is immense. Unfortunately, at every turn, people want your details for their records, sometimes, even making a small purchase in a shop! There are a number of things you can do to reduce the times your name, address and other details are given out, sold on to other marketing companies which, put simply, increases the risk of a stalker finding your whereabouts.

• Consider obtaining a secure PO box No for your contact address. Details can be found on the Royal Mail website www.royalmail.com or by contacting them on 08457 950 950. An accompanying letter from the police will be required for your application.
  
• Ensure your mobile and home numbers are ‘hidden’ using caller withheld functions so that wherever you call, your number will not be identified.
  

Register with:

• Mailing Preference Service at Mailing Preference, Registration Line: 0845 703 4599

The Mailing Preference Service (MPS) is a free service set up 20 years ago and funded by the direct mail industry to enable consumers to have their names and home addresses in the UK removed from or added to lists used by the industry.

• Telephone Preference Service at Telephone Preference, Registration Line: 0845 070 0707
  

The Telephone Preference Service (TPS) helps you to make sure your telephone number is no longer available to organisations, including charities and voluntary organisations who may telephone you with offers and information you do not wish to receive

Under Government legislation introduced on 1st May 1999 and replaced on 11th December 2003 by the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003, it is unlawful to make unsolicited direct marketing calls to individuals who have indicated that they do not want to receive such calls.
You can either do this by contacting companies directly and asking them not to call you or you can register with a central register - the TPS.

If you have a fax machine:

• Fax Preference Service at Fax Preference, registration Line: 0845 070 0702

When you complete details for the electoral register, ensure you read carefully and tick the appropriate boxes to ensure your details are not used for marketing or other purposes. See the Electoral Commission for further details.

Above all, be strong, although you may not feel like it, and remember you are not alone in this situation.

Keep a record of every suspicious event that occurs or every unsolicited article that you may receive. In particular note the date, time, when, where and what occurred, or what was received. To enable this record to be used as evidence at any later Court hearing, you must ensure that it is recorded contemporaneously. i.e. write it down immediately while it is still fresh in your mind. Always keep every note you make.

Contact the police and notify them of what has been received, then take your own steps to preserve the evidence.

Letters and other documents/paperwork:

• Keep envelopes as well as the contents.
  
• Handle the item as little as possible and hold by the corners/edges where possible.
  
• Do not mark, staple, pin or fold the document.
  
• All paperwork should be placed into another larger envelope or PAPER bag.
  
• Once placed into another envelope DO NOT WRITE on the outer envelope.

Damp/wet items:

• If possible place into a polythene (freezer) bag, seal and immediately put in your freezer.
  
• Avoid putting paper bags into the freezer as they will go damp and can tear easily.
  
• If you cannot place into a freezer try to separate the items and lay them out on kitchen paper to air dry naturally.
  
• Do not use hair dryers or place into airing cupboard/warm room. Once dry place the items into paper bag/envelope.

Hypodermic needles/Syringes/other sharp objects should be handled with extreme caution to avoid contamination or injury to yourself:

• DO NOT try to REMOVE NEEDLES from syringes.
  
• Place items into a strong cardboard box or plastic container (sandwich box).

Foodstuffs:

• Place into a clean plastic container (sandwich box or similar) and freeze. If there are items that you really don't want to keep, or cannot store as above guidelines suggest, then please take a photograph or video of the item (and contents) with a ruler or tape measure along one or two sides with the measures at right angles.

IN ALL CASES KEEP THE PACKAGING EVEN IF YOU ARE DISPOSING OF THE CONTENTS.


Electronic ­ General Advice
It is important to preserve all information from any media, be it hard disks, floppy disks, tape or any other storage media. This should be obtained without in any way compromising the original data. If you are downloading the material onto storage media, then try and make sure you use new blank storage media, and have an adequate supply of replacement disks, tapes etc. Break out the record/erase tab to prevent accidental erasure, and write the date and time on each item and place in a sealed envelope ready to hand to the Police.

Mobile Telephones/Pagers
Do not tamper with, or dispose of the mobile phone/pager or SIM card. Write down and save any text messages or the content of the call, and the time they were received.

Land line Telephones/Answering Machines
Use 1471 and write down details of calls, even if they were unanswered or silent calls. Do not enter into conversation with your stalker. If they are talking then try and record any conversation and retain the tape as above. It may be worth obtaining a dictating machine for these purposes.

Photographic/Video
If possible use a video or camera to record the stalker's presence in your neighbourhood, but attempt to do this covertly to reduce any risk. The more detail the better. Anyone else you know may be able to help you with this.

Computers
Save information received onto disk and print out a hard copy of relevant data. Do not delete the original..... Only open emails if you know the originator, ensure your computer is secure and virus protected.

Notify Relatives/Colleagues
Inform your neighbours, relatives, friends and work colleagues of what is happening to you. They should keep records of sightings and notify you of anything they see. Give them a printed copy of this page as this will also apply to them as first-hand witnesses.