Plans to help keep women in Wigan safe at night are revealed

And now a range of initiatives is set to be rolled out across Wigan to help protect women.

As part of the Safety of Women at Night scheme, Wigan Council will be working with bars, clubs, restaurants and taxi companies to raise awareness and promote safety and security standards.

Training schemes, engagement workshops and pop-up safe spaces in town centres are also part of the wide-ranging plans.

The local authority has received more than £273,000 from the Home Office for the projects to be delivered by the Wigan Borough Place and Community Safety Partnership.

“We all have a role to play when it comes to ensuring women and girls feel safer on the streets of our borough.

“These projects will help to promote safety for everyone with a particular focus on tackling violence against women and girls.”

The plans include a return for the St John’s Ambulance-led safety havens - a highly visible safe place, providing reassuring presence.

They will be placed in key locations at weekends and safety marshals will be in operation.

Training will also be provided for night-time economy staff to identify issues and provide adequate support for anyone who may need it.

The council will be promoting the Ask For Angela initiative, which is already in place in towns and cities across the UK.

Anyone who feels unsafe or vulnerable can approach staff at licensed premises and ask for Angela, with training provided for employees on how to provide support.

Engagement and education programmes will be held at schools and colleges across the borough and the WigLe Dance group will hold workshops to share the key messages of the projects.

Officers will support the LSAVI (licensing, security and vulnerability initiative) which will help licensed premises, working in partnership with Greater Manchester Police.

Coun Paul Kenny, lead cabinet member for district centres and night-time economy, said: “Clearly there will be a lot of concentrated activity over the next two months but our focus will not stop there.

“It is a key part of our Deal 2030 plan that we want to ensure Wigan borough is a safe place to live and work for us all.

“These projects will help inform our future local initiatives and will also support the Greater Manchester #IsThisOk campaign, as part of the Gender-Based Violence Strategy.”

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