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As part of an on-going Essex-wide project, women and girls are invited to anonymously shine a light into dark corners of Essex via an online map.
The interactive map, launched in 2023, encourages women and girls, over the age of 13 years to anonymously share places they feel safe or unsafe on an online map of the county to help all residents of Essex.
Although the project is aimed specifically at women and girls, everyone is welcome to give their feedback.
Share your experiences
The map allows users to share their experiences and help others make judgement on whether a place is welcoming or not.
The map can be accessed on a desktop computer or phones and tablets and users can drop a pin to a specific location and write why they felt safe or unsafe there. Other users will be able to see this data too.
All of the data collected will be used by partners to inform their work going forward.
Users can vote up areas already highlighted or highlight a new area for others to see. It is all strictly anonymous, and the information given will make a difference.
Making the county safer
The map has been set up jointly by the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, Essex County Council and Essex Police. The project is supported by Essex County Fire and Rescue Service and researchers at Nottingham Trent University.
Similar maps are in use across the UK and give women and girls the opportunity to drop a pin on a particular area they have felt unsafe and state why without using their names.
This initiative follows extensive research by Essex County Council’s Safety Advisory Group that shows 16% of women involved felt unsafe in our towns and cities during the day and 47% felt unsafe at night.
This latest initiative is part of the partners’ collective commitment in making the county safer for women and girls and also helping them to feel safer too.
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