In celebration of International Women’s Day (8 March), Staffordshire Commissioner Ben Adams welcomed Stafford’s Couture nightclub as the latest signatory of a new charter promoting safer public spaces for women and girls.

By signing the Violence Reduction Alliance’s Safer Places for Women and Girls Charter, Couture have shown their acknowledgement of the issues women and girls face, and that they are committed to improving their safety and experience whilst enjoying a great night out.

Staffordshire Commissioner for Police, Fire & Rescue and Crime, and Chair of the Violence Reduction Alliance, Ben Adams said:

“We’re building a strong network dedicated to improving the safety of women and girls, and others who may find themselves vulnerable.

“I am pleased to see Couture have made their pledge and signed the Charter. I hope to see many more businesses and organisations operating across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent sign the Charter and be a part of improving women and girl’s safety.”

Nick Parkinson, Manager at Couture nightclub, said:

“I am very proud of the team here for taking the lead on this initiative. As a father of two girls, I see how important women’s safety is and how we can all do better and keep learning to improve our operating standards to provide a safe night out.”

Backed by successful Safer Streets and Safety of Women at Night Commissioner-funded bids totalling £800,000, the VRA have helped to improve the safety of women and girls by:

• Producing the Safer Places for Women and Girls Charter and Toolkit
• Installing additional lighting, CCTV and alley gating
• Developing vulnerability Awareness Training for all public facing businesses and organisations, including those in the night-time economy
• Implementing street pastor schemes in busy night-time location, to offer advice, signposting, basic first aide and help in managing the allocation of taxis
• Producing PSHE resources for use within primary schools
• Creating community awareness campaigns to drive public awareness around different aspects of women’s safety during the day and at night.

Find out more about the Safer Places for Women and Girls Charter:

Safer Places for Women and Girls – Violence Reduction Alliance