Police chief welcomes online tool
POLICE and crime commissioner for Cheshire John Dwyer has welcomed the launch of a new online tool, enabling people to flag areas of the county that make them feel unsafe.
StreetSafe is a threemonth national pilot launched by the Government and has support from the National Police Chiefs Council.
Although the service is primarily targeted at tackling violence against women and girls, users can pin drop areas on a map where they feel at increased risk of crime - regardless of whether an offence has actually taken place.
This could be due to anything from a lack of street lighting, abandoned buildings or vandalism, to a place where someone has been followed, verbally abused or assaulted.
John Dwyer said: “This three-month pilot will help us gauge how residents in our communities feel about certain areas of their towns and places they visit for work or social reasons.
“Tackling violence against women and girls is a key priority of mine, and the data gathered during this pilot could help the police, local councils and others work together to ensure people feel safer when they’re out and about.”
Victoria Atkins, Minister for Safeguarding, said:
“No one should fear walking the streets, but for too many women and girls, the threat of intimidation and harassment whilst going about their everyday lives is all too familiar.
“Our call for evidence revealed the need for a space where people can share their experiences of feeling unsafe in public places - regardless of whether a crime has been committed.
“StreetSafe allows the public to flag concerns directly to police, ensuring that those responsible for making our streets safer use the data to improve safety and understand how local areas can better respond.”
The StreetSafe tool is not designed as an alternative for people to report serious crime, so if you have experienced a crime then you should continue to call 999 in an emergency and 101 in a non-emergency.
Non-emergency crimes can also be recorded on the Cheshire Police website.