NHS staff are being recognised for their work on a new programme to help tackle stalking.

Six months ago, Southern Health launched a service called the Recolo project for people with obsessive thoughts and behaviours about others.

During National Stalking Awareness Week, which ends today (April 12), staff are being recognised for the innovative work being undertaken in partnership with police, probation and victim advocacy colleagues - as part of the Multi-Agency Stalking Intervention Programme.

The Recolo project works with stalkers to make behavioural changes - improving their psychological wellbeing and their relationships with other people and, so bidding to reduce the risks of stalking behaviour and the impact on potential victims.

Members of the Recolo project team - which includes a psychiatrist, psychologist and occupational therapist - attended a national conference this week where their work was shared with a wider audience as an example of the collaborative work being done to tackle stalking.

The service has received more than 80 referrals in its first six months,

Dr Kirsty Butcher, joint clinical lead for Hampshire’s new mental health service, said: “We work with the patient and their referrer to conduct a Stalking Risk Profile, developing a formulation regarding the stalking behaviour, and then providing recommendations regarding the individual’s treatment and management.

"I have to say, we are really encouraged by the feedback we’ve had to this new service since we launched it last autumn and we plan to continue developing our service - linking with the judiciary in coming months to increase awareness of the project, as well as providing more training on stalking for our partners.”

The Recolo project team works collaboratively alongside Hampshire Constabulary, Hampshire & Isle of Wight probation teams and Aurora New Dawn, a victim advocacy organisation, as part of the Multi-Agency Stalking Intervention Programme (MASIP).