A campaigner against domestic violence has called for a national register for stalkers.

Laura Richards, CEO of the Paladin national stalking advocacy service, spoke at a special conference in Enfield on national White Ribbon Day.

Ms Richards said: “Stalking is an insidious and devastating crime that wrecks the lives of the people it affects. We have made progress in making stalking a criminal offence but we also desperately need a national register of serial stalkers and domestic violence perpetrators.

"Many are serial offenders who stalk and abuse multiple victims, with some escalating to rape, serious harm and murder.

“We need to change our emphasis in dealing with stalking and domestic violence, where the focus is on telling victims to change their phones, move address and disappear themselves rather than deal proactively with the problem - the perpetrator.”

The event lasted throughout the day with a number of speakers including Neil Day from the Forced Marriage Unit at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Claire Cody from the University of Bedfordshire, who spoke about child sexual exploitation, and a survivor of domestic abuse from Solace Women’s Aid.

Enfield Council’s cabinet member for environment and community safety Councillor Chris Bond said: “Our partners in the police work very hard to support the victims of stalking and domestic violence and I’d urge anyone who is being stalked or is suffering domestic abuse to seek help immediately because the best way to break the cycle is for the authorities to intervene and protect the vulnerable party.

“We also wholeheartedly support the calls made by Paladin to introduce a national register for stalkers and the perpetrators of domestic violence, it is a sensible, proportionate and effective measure against vile crimes, with victims who often find it hard to make their voices heard.

”People with a history of stalking are extremely dangerous and there needs to be proper tracking and monitoring of them.”