Bar and nightclubs in Northamptonshire encouraged to take up training to tackle violence against women

Organisations across Northampton have come together to create measures to make women and girls feel safer at night.

The Northamptonshire police fire and crime commissioner came together with West Northamptonshire Council along with Northamptonshire Rape Crisis and Northampton BID at the Picturedrome on Thursday, April 21 to say “it only takes one community to say enough is enough” to violence against women.

A new measure to improve women’s safety includes funding the ‘Shout Up!’ programme, which trains bar staff in identifying and challenging harassing behaviour in their premises.

Suzy Keeping owns two town centre venues, the Picturedrome and the Old White Hart in Far Cotton, whose staff have all completed the Shout Up! training.

Suzy said: “I don’t think I know a woman who hasn’t experienced something nasty - let’s not pretend it doesn’t happen to every woman, it does. We think that’s how it is but I am 100 percent up for helping to make a change and that is why our staff have taken part in Shout Up!”

Northamptonshire Rape Crisis has delivered Shout Up! training to three pilot venues and been consultants on the awareness campaign.

Chief executive officer at Northamptonshire Rape Crisis, Dawn Thomas, said: “We wanted to do something that would call out inappropriate behaviour and enable customers in those venues to recognise that staff will intervene if they are feeling uncomfortable.

“This training enables the staff to recognise where they can intervene and where they should intervene and hopefully recognise that they can call out inappropriate behaviour and will be supported by staff members.”

Northamptonshire Rape Crisis encourages night time venues to reach out to them if they are interested in receiving Shout Up! training. They expect to train another 13 venues before the end of April.

Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner and West Northamptonshire Council together were awarded more than £800,000 in Home Office funding to invest in the safety of women in the night-time economy.

The programme of work was developed in consultation with groups representing women and local communities, and has included:

• £180,000 investment for new CCTV and help points that allow someone to buzz for help and speak instantly to operators, while the camera zooms in on their location. These will be placed at the Racecourse, Becket’s Park, All Saints Plaza and Abington Street.

• Funding to bring the Shout Up! programme to Northampton.

• ANPR cameras in the Racecourse car park and a well-lit, signed, safer walking route across Becket’s Park to the town centre.

• Funding for licensed premises to participate in the Licensing Safety and Vulnerability Initiative (LSavi) so that they can reassure customers they take security seriously

• Support for a special police operation targeting perpetrators who prey on women in the night-time economy

Northamptonshire police, fire and crime commissioner Stephen Mold said that “women’s safety is everyone’s responsibility.”

He added: “Enough really is enough: it only takes one person to reach out, offer support, tell a friend to cut out the inappropriate comments. Together we can put a stop to sexual harassment, and that can only make the whole community safer.

Further information can be found at www.itonlytakesone.org.uk.