Councillors from the Medway Labour and Co-operative Group recently had the opportunity to highlight their concerns with the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) and new Chief constable for Medway Shona Lowndes around the issue of women’s safety in our community.

We also used it as an opportunity to draw attention to the report we’ve published following our series of women’s safety awareness stalls around Medway. 

Cllr Teresa Murray, Deputy Leader of the Medway Labour and Co-operative Group said:

“Following our recent women’s safety campaign throughout Medway and the results of the recent PCC victims of crime survey, we were pleased to see that the authorities are now treating the safety of women as a serious issue that needs its own separate focus. 

“We think this prioritisation is long overdue, and are pleased to hear that the Police have also agreed to feedback on the report we produced following our street stall campaign that engaged directly with over 500 local women all across the Medway Towns.”

Cllr Zoe Van Dyke, Member for Strood North added:

“We’ve been advocating for more attention to be given to women’s safety for a long time. We were glad that Kent Police and the PCC are now prioritising this issue, even if some local Conservatives such as Cllr Gulvin, the Portfolio Holder for Resources, still continue to bury their heads in the sand regarding the high priority that women and girls in our community expect the Council to attribute to their safety and wellbeing.

“We will continue to campaign on this issue and demand that the utmost is done to build a safe Medway community for all of our residents.”

Notes

Here is Cllr Van Dyke’s full report that she has released following our women’s safety campaign – https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Q3UoHu9U5lNC-tq3xra_TxHQKbzP2x-U9CZ-hbO3oZM/edit?usp=sharing