Police are offering businesses in the Renfrewshire area free training if they join the Keep Safe initiative in partnership with a Paisley charity that tackles disability hate crime.
I Am Me Scotland was founded by Carol Burt in 2013 and works in partnership with Police Scotland to raise awareness with young people and disability groups through the power of drama and film.
In 2016 Police Scotland decided to take the initiative national and expand it across the whole of Scotland to make a network of support available to more people.
Project development officer Aimee McLellan said that helping people when they feel unsafe is what Keep Safe is all about. Currently the initiative has 938 sign-ups, with the eye of expanding in the future.
Aimee explained: “Keep Safe is an initiative that will help people find a safe place building in many different locations across Scotland and they can identify these buildings by the keep safe logo being displayed on the doors or windows.
“It is good to help people who may feel they need to get into a building for a multitude of reasons, whether that be feeling unsafe, anxious or just to meet friends.
"These places who have signed up for the Keep Safe Initiative have trained staff who can deal with a range of different situations. There is a police contact in every division who progresses the initiative in their area.
“People can download the Keep Safe app that will show them a designated route that lists all the buildings people can go into on their way home. This will help make people aware that they have a safe place to go to no matter what route home.”
Most people who have used Keep Safe places have used them as they know that they are a safe place to shop, eat, meet friends or to use the services on offer.
Many will never need to ask for help, but knowing that they can, if needed, can be enough to give people the confidence to connect with their local communities, helping to tackle isolation and loneliness.
Reaching out to businesses, a spokesman for Renfrewshire and Inverclyde Police said: ”We would like to offer FREE training for your staff to join the #KeepSafe initiative with our partners I Am Me Scotland.
"The initial training can be done face to face or online depending on your own requirements. We can deliver this to a single staff member or your whole team. Let’s help keep people safe in Renfrewshire and Inverclyde and increase our #KeepSafePlaces."
To find out more please contact your local Safer Communities Team to discuss the criteria and next steps. Email RenfrewshireInverclydeDCUSaferCommunities@scotland.pnn.police.uk
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