Violence Against Women and Girls/Safety in Public Spaces
Understanding how perceptions of safety can be improved, and incidents of harassment and threatening behaviour reduced in public spaces across Cambridgeshire.
More +Safe After Hours, is the third campaign for Cambridgeshire Constabulary which aims to tackle violence against women and girls. This campaign focused on the night-time economy, educating men on what is unacceptable behaviour in a night time setting.
This campaign was delivered as part of "Safer Streets", a government initiative to make our cities safer. Safe After Hours was rolled out across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, encouraging men and boys to re-consider their behaviour and create a safer environment for women and girls at night.
80% of women feel unsafe in public spaces.
Following research in Cambridgeshire that revealed 80% of women in the county feel unsafe in public spaces, with the majority feeling particularly unsafe at night-time*, we designed a campaign to educate men on attitudes and behaviours that contribute to unease and fear that women often feel after dark.
The research spanned four months and included a snap survey, three insight surveys, and resident interviews. The resident interviews helped to put us into their shoes and create engaging content that focussed on the perpetrators and not the victims. We uncovered 16 behavioural insights which were used to create this campaign.
*2022 survey data by Social Change
Raising awareness of what feeling unsafe 'looks like'.
Acting as an educational campaign to help men identify misogynistic, harassing and sexually violent behaviours, Safe After Hours informs people on women think and feel in public spaces when it is dark, such as waiting at a bus stop, going for a run or walking home, and how some behaviours lead to situations that feel dangerous for women.
As well as talking directly to men, the campaign encouraged people to become active bystanders, equipping them with the tools and information they need to safely intervene when they witness women or girls being targeted with harassment or sexual violence.
Supported by leading charities and local organisations.
Commissioned by Cambridgeshire Constabulary, with support from Rape Crisis, leading forensic healthcare specialist, Mountain Healthcare, Cambridge United F.C., and the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Domestic Abuse & Sexual Violence Partnership, Safe After Hours launched alongside Cambridgeshire Constabulary’s night club safety accreditation scheme, with local night-time economy businesses in the area, which aims to train people working in the nightime economy to identify predatory behaviours.
How did the campaign do?
Running for just 8 weeks, the campaign delivered over 6.7 million impressions, reaching 349,224 people in Cambridgeshire. We were able to forge relationships with Universities, Charities, and other important organisations to promote the campaign and make a contribution to ending violence against women.
Understanding how perceptions of safety can be improved, and incidents of harassment and threatening behaviour reduced in public spaces across Cambridgeshire.
More +Call Them Out, is a sister campaign to KNOW Violence Against Women. It is aimed at boys and men to help them feel empowered to call out their peers who exhibit behaviour that can be categorised as misogyny, harassment, or sexual violence.
More +Research to understand public confidence in and perceptions of police visibility in Cambridgeshire.
More +In-depth research with Police staff to support successful implement the Leadership Development Programme and embed leadership behaviours across all levels of the Police force.
More +Enter your email address below to access the Academy and our Webinars