Women and girls will be better protected on nights out as the Government expands an undercover policing operation designed to stop predators before they strike. Project Vigilant, already in use in a small number of forces, will now be boosted across nine additional police forces in England and Wales, marking one of the largest targeted crackdowns on predatory behaviour in public spaces.
The operation deploys specially trained plain‑clothes officers into busy night‑time hotspots where they monitor for high‑risk behaviour and alert uniformed colleagues to intervene early. Rather than waiting for offences to occur, officers identify patterns of behaviour that signal predatory intent – loitering, persistent following, filming women without consent, misogynistic comments, unwanted sexualised contact, or returning to areas after being moved on.
Backed by £1 million in new Home Office funding, the expansion aims to prevent violence against women and girls in bars, clubs and late‑night districts before incidents escalate.
The extra funding will support over 200 new undercover deployments across:
- Kent
- Hertfordshire
- Gloucestershire
- Essex
- South Wales
- Staffordshire
- Merseyside
- Cumbria
- West Midlands
These forces join Thames Valley Police, Wiltshire Police and Norfolk Constabulary, which already operate Project Vigilant with Home Office support.
Thames Valley Police, which pioneered the tactic in 2019, has even trialled spiking detection dogs, capable of identifying substances such as GHB and MDMA even when diluted. These dogs patrol entrances and venues alongside plain‑clothes officers, helping prevent drink spiking before it takes place and providing critical evidence after incidents.
The Home Office said too many women have felt unsafe on nights out, forced to worry about drink spiking, assault and harassment. Declaring violence against women and girls a “national emergency”, ministers have pledged to halve such violence within a decade.
Rather than relying solely on reactive policing, Project Vigilant focuses on early intervention, disrupting behaviour that poses clear risk. The Government says this model reflects a major shift from responding to crime to preventing it.
Forces may also invest the new funding in:
- advanced data‑analysis tools
- trialling new technologies
- improved communications equipment
- strengthened specialist training for officers
Essex Police alone will run 80 additional deployments, including high‑visibility and covert patrols and traffic operations to prevent predatory behaviour involving vehicles, such as loitering in cars or misuse of taxis to target women.
Between July 2021 and September 2023, Thames Valley Vigilant officers stopped 532 men. Of those, 35% were identified as suspects in violence against women and girls offences, including rape and indecent exposure – demonstrating the impact of early‑intervention policing.
These results feed into the Government’s wider Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, launched in December, which focuses on prevention, early intervention and relentless action against offenders. Measures include:
- specialist rape and serious sexual offence teams in every police force
- new school lessons challenging misogyny and promoting healthy relationships
- stronger guidance on teenage relationship abuse
- early intervention programmes for boys and young men to challenge harmful attitudes
Jess Phillips, Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls, said:
“Every woman and girl deserves to enjoy a night out without fear. On a Project Vigilant deployment, I saw first-hand the difference this approach makes.
“Instead of asking women to change their behaviour, we are going after those who cause harm – disrupting predatory men and making clear where responsibility lies.
“This is what treating violence against women and girls as a national emergency looks like.”
Image credit: iStock
