More police will be on the streets during the Christmas party season to help women and girls feel safer.
Specialist patrols will be sent out by Cumbria Constabulary to offer reassurance and catch offenders in busy nightlife areas.
More high-visibility officers will be out in the run-up to Christmas, while police in plain clothes will also be deployed to identify anyone displaying inappropriate or predatory behaviour.
The move follows concerns raised in a survey carried out by police to hear more from women and girls on how they felt about their personal safety.
Feeling safe in the night-time economy was raised as a key worry.
Last year, Cumbria police ran the Call It Out survey online, so it could hear more from women and girls on how they felt about personal safety.
More than 2,480 people took part. The data has since been analysed and it is now being used to better inform police services and work with partners.
Detective Inspector Mike Taylor is Cumbria police’s dedicated operational detective inspector overseeing work on the issue of violence against women and girls.
He said: “We’ve listened to what women and girls have said – and one of the concerns raised in the survey was about being a victim of crime in the night-time economy.
“As a result our general policing operation around Christmas this year will have an extra focus so we can address these concerns, provide reassurance and catch offenders.
“Let’s be clear: Feeling unsafe is obviously not an experience exclusive to women and girls and our officers are out there to protect everyone and ensure everyone’s welfare.
“But some of the offences that occur in the night time economy, such as sexual offences and harassment offences, are overwhelmingly committed by males against females.
“The concerns women have about feeling unsafe on a night out merits this extra focus – and our patrols will act accordingly.”
The response will include:
- Regular police patrols put out to respond to incidents, ensure safety and offer reassurance in the night-time economy during the festive season
- Welfare patrols run by neighbourhood police teams, who will concentrate on the welfare of women and girls while out at this busy time of the year.
- Operation Vigilant patrols – a blend of uniform officers and plain clothed officers who identify those displaying predatory or unacceptable behaviour in the night-time economy, focussing on hot spots where violence against women and girls might take place.
The welfare and Vigilant patrols will be run across the busiest areas for nights out, including Barrow, Bowness, Kendal, Whitehaven and Carlisle.
DI Taylor said: “Operation Vigilant will include high visibility and officers in plain clothes.
“The high visibility officers are there to offer reassurance and those in plain clothes will aim to identify those displaying predatory behaviour or inappropriate behaviour.
“Violence against women and girls is unacceptable and everyone should be safe and feel safe, no matter where they are.
“Women and girls should not have to avoid certain areas or change their own behaviour, through fear of being abused or harassed.”
