FIRST WALK & TALK INITIATIVE A SUCCESS!
STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & SAFETY
As part of Festive Fleet Street Quarter Safety Week, we collaborated with the City of London Police, and introduced the first in our series of ‘Walk and Talk' sessions. This important initiative pairs female officers with women from the FSQ community for walks, encouraging open conversations about safety, reflecting a positive step towards creating safer and more connected community through active local engagement and open communication.
The operation itself involved three engagement teams paired up with our local officers, walking around three different routes. Each team set off with a female officer and shared routes with them that they felt needed improvement to feel safer in. This initiative was held over lunch time to ensure we had a high attendance of FSQ City workers to make it convenient for them to drop by and for it to feel a productive part of their day in helping to make the Fleet Street area safer.
To help encourage other people to share their concerns around safety, we set out an engagement pop-up stand for those members of the public who may be commuters, tourists or residents to stop by and feel welcomed to have a quick chat with our local policing team!
Engaging Conversations for Safer Communities
Female officers walk with women in the square mile to really see where the FSQ workers are feeling unsafe on their day-to-day commute. These sessions are scheduled for a minimum of 30 minutes, highlighting how the City of London Police are willingly investing their days into addressing the problem of VAWG. The officers understand the importance of adapting these walks to the participants' preferences, often taking place in parks or open spaces. The primary focus is on encouraging dialogue, to gather insights, suggestions, and concerns to inform safety improvements but, to just have a chat and feel you’re being listened to in regards to your safety!
Officer Commitment and Reporting
Officers receive briefings, promoting openness about personal experiences to strengthen connections with these individuals. They are commitment to reporting any intelligence or alleged crimes while ensuring safeguarding and appropriate signposting.
Building Trust and Community Involvement
Feedback is actively sought through surveys to evaluate the initiative's effectiveness, with a commitment to continuous improvement. Commitment to bringing officers together with women from diverse communities to build trust.
Beyond 'Walk and Talk'
Our 'Walk and Talk' initiative goes beyond to the 'StreetSafe' website. Allowing the public to anonymously share areas where they feel unsafe, providing valuable insights for law enforcement. The City of London Police website keeps the public informed about local ward teams and community policing efforts.
Get Involved: For those interested in our next Walk and Talk session in early 2024, please email Security and Operations Manager Beth Nash on: beth.nash@fleetstreetquarter.co.uk
