Up to 300 bar staff in Guernsey will receive training under the national Safe Place Project in April thanks to funding from the Social Investment Fund.
The project will see Guernsey become the first place outside of mainland Great Britain to have qualifying venues certified as ‘Safe Places’ by training provider ‘the egalitarian’. The Social Investment Fund (SIF) funding application was made by SafetyNet Guernsey, as part of its efforts to improve safety in the night-time economy.
The training includes modules on how to be an effective ally and understanding, identifying, and responding to spiking, sexual violence, and other unacceptable behaviours. The project helps to create environments where customers and staff feel safer, and increased trust and confidence to help enhance the reputations of participating venues.
SafetyNet Chair, Poppy Murray, said she was thrilled that the funding was awarded. “We are beyond grateful to SIF for supporting this project, which is a landmark moment for night-time economy safety in Guernsey. The egalitarian has achieved outstanding results with venues across the UK, significantly improving safety for both customers and staff. I am confident they can deliver the same positive outcomes for Guernsey,” she said.
“Many islanders have expressed a desire to feel safer on nights out, and we hope this training will help boost public confidence in certified venues. Additionally, we have received support from businesses who have committed to prioritising certified venues for their corporate events. Guernsey Police has also confirmed that the project will complement their efforts to create safer spaces, and that they will maintain a record of certified venues to assist with their investigations. This project will benefit the entire community.”
Research by the egalitarian has shown 97% of customers would feel safer in venues where they know staff have been trained, with 91% saying they would stay longer in those venues. Miss Murray confirmed that SafetyNet will support and promote all certified venues and hopes to see a boost for night-time economy businesses.
To receive Safe Place certification, 75% of customer-facing staff from each venue must undertake the half-day training course. The egalitarian then undertakes six-monthly audits to ensure that this threshold is met or arrange additional training if required due to staff turnover.
Miss Murray continued: “In the coming weeks, we will be reaching out directly to venues and encouraging as many staff members as possible to sign up. Spaces will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, and we are excited to share that all Randalls’ venues and Pingquay have already signed up. We are also incredibly grateful to Randalls for providing accommodation for the trainers. Thanks to the generous support of SIF and Randalls, there is no cost to venues, and
we hope many more will take advantage of this opportunity to book training for their staff.”
Chair of SIF, The Very Reverend Tim Barker, said: “SIF is pleased to support this important work in Guernsey, which will improve safety for both the public and bar staff alike. We are aware of the high incidence of sexual offences in the island and increasing reports of spiking of drinks. We hope that the training will improve support for victims, and help staff to respond more effectively to difficult and dangerous situations.”
Pictured: Left to right – Simon Allum – SafetyNet Trustee and Director of Pingquay; Matt Polli – Managing Director of Randall (who are providing free accommodation for the egalitarian trainers); Sadie Siviter de Paucar – Lead Officer of the Social Investment Fund; Poppy Murray – Chair of SafetyNet Guernsey; The Very Reverend Tim Barker – Chair of the Social Investment Fund; Detective Sergeant Thomas Lowe – Criminal Investigation Department, Guernsey Police.
