Following the heart-breaking news earlier this year regarding Sarah Everard, The Pen Warehouse and Snap Products have taken several steps internally to provide guidance and assistance to their employees when walking alone as part of a ‘Walk safe initiative’, which included hosting a self-defence class to ensure all staff members are fully equipped with the latest defence techniques to help keep them safe. This went ahead as soon as COVID restrictions allowed.
The activity-filled afternoon was delivered by Streetwise Safety Training, a company founded by Martyn Bowie, an ex-police officer with a mission to connect working professionals to law enforcement. As well as excellent safety training, this was a considerable team building opportunity, great for employee wellbeing and allowed staff members to socialise whilst respecting social distancing measures. Bringing together members of all different departments.
Participants were taught incidents where these techniques may be suitable as well as Common Law. They were then placed in pairs where they learnt a handful of easy-to-remember moves using soft pads.
Additional parts of the initiative included:
- Police recommended personal attack alarms offered to all employees for use both in and out of work
- All work phones have all now been installed with listed SOS contacts, which is mandatory for any work phone going forward. Walking safety tips have been shared from recommended sources including Personal Safety Advice from Ramblers.org and 5 Safety Tips For Walking at Night from My Fitness Pal.
Helen Dyl, Operations Director at The Pen Warehouse and Snap Products commented: “Our employees are our family, they are also mainly based in the local community and will walk to and from work. Their safety and wellbeing are our responsibility and after the tragic news of what happened to Sarah Everard, we knew we had to act. This will now be an annual offering for our teams. Martyn and his team were fantastic, and we would recommend their service.”
Published on: July 23rd, 2021
