Women are being encouraged to report locations where they have felt unsafe as part of a ground-breaking initiative supported by Nottinghamshire Police and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner.
StreetSafe allows people to highlight concerns such as inadequate street lighting, abandoned buildings, poorly designed open spaces or areas blighted by vandalism.
It could also be a location where people have experienced verbal abuse or been followed.
The anonymous online tool is particularly aimed at women and girls, and will help police and partners to identify and shine a spotlight on problem areas.
Chief Inspector Claire Gould, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “No-one should ever be in a situation where they feel unsafe while out and about in Nottinghamshire.
“This tool provides people with an easy and convenient way to make police and our partners aware of locations where they feel unsafe – and will allow us to take action to improve the situation in that particular place.
“It could be a street where you regularly walk which feels unsafe because of poor street lighting or somewhere you have felt unsafe because of the actions of other people.
“I believe StreetSafe can become a vital tool in helping to not only keep people safe, but make them feel safe as well.
“We want to hear from the public about issues affecting their quality of life and the data from this will help inform us of where we need to work with partners to make improvements in our communities.”
No questions are asked on StreetSafe which will reveal your identity, but there are optional questions to help form a better understanding of your concerns.
The data is made available to policing teams to allow officers and partners to have a better understanding of locations which are making people feel unsafe.
Police and Crime Commissioner for Nottinghamshire Caroline Henry said the online tool was a great idea that could build on ongoing work in Nottinghamshire to make the county’s streets safer for women.
“Earlier this year we launched a whole package of measures in Nottingham to reduce women’s vulnerability on a night out," she said.
"These include extra night patrols on the city’s tram and transport network and a ‘Safe Space’ facility with trained medical professionals for revellers needing urgent assistance or safety advice and training for staff at licensed premises to support and protect women needing help in their venues.
“This was after my Office, in partnership with Nottinghamshire Police and Nottingham City Council, secured almost £250,000 from the Home Office’s Safety of Women at Night (SWaN) Fund.
“We have also been successful in securing £5.3m of Home Office funding through the Safer Streets programme since May last year, and this money has helped us launch some national innovations to keep people safe – including the Refuge Point CCTV cameras in Ashfield and Bassetlaw, which allow people in distress to contact the CCTV control room for help at the push of a button, and a Safe Space scheme at 44 accredited venues in Sutton-in-Ashfield, offering women temporary sanctuary when they are at risk or in danger.
“Measures like this, combined with the new StreetSafe tool, mean people can be more confident than ever that they can feel safe when they go out in Nottinghamshire. The work is ongoing and we will continue to do everything we can to respond, protect and support people.”
StreetSafe captures location data provided by Google Maps, details about the location which may cause you to feel unsafe, details about people’s behaviour in that location which may cause you to feel unsafe and the reasons for not reporting a crime.
The tool is supported by police and developed in cooperation with the Home Office and the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC).
StreetSafe is not a tool for reporting crime. In an emergency always call 999. To report other crimes call 101 or visit our website.
To long your concerns, visit StreetSafe | Police.uk (www.police.uk)
Posted on Friday 30th September 2022