Safety Tips

Here are a few tips on how to reduce the risks when you are out and about on the streets.

• Plan ahead. Before you go out, think about how you are going to get home, e.g. Can you travel home with a friend? What time does the last bus/train leave?
• If you are at all worried, try and stay near a group of people.
• Try to use well lit, busy streets and use the route you know best
• Keep your mind on your surroundings – remember if you are chatting on your mobile phone or wearing a personal stereo, you will not hear trouble approaching.
• Be extra careful when using cashpoint machines. Make sure nobody is hovering nearby and do not count your money in the middle of the street.
• If you think you are being followed, trust your instincts and take action. As confidently as you can, cross the road, turning to see who is behind you. If you are still being followed, keep moving. Make for a busy area and tell people what is happening. If necessary, call the police.
• We all have the right to wear any clothes we wish, but we do need to consider what effect they may have on others. You can help to reduce the risks by wearing clothes you can move in easily and shoes that you can run in.
• Try not to keep all your valuables in one place. Instead place valuables such as wallets in an inside pocket.
• Consider carrying a personal safety alarm, which can be used to shock and disorientate an attacker giving you vital seconds to get away.
• Put ICE (In Case of Emergency) phone numbers in your mobile phone. This way, if you are hurt or in trouble and someone arrives to help you, they will be able to find an emergency contact number in your phone
• When arriving home by car or taxi ask the driver to wait until you are inside your home.