Out There, Safer Together
'Shame stopped me reporting spiking incident"
"I felt disempowered"
"You just feel so disgusted in yourself"
"It takes quite a while to process"
"Being spiked left me terrified and ashamed"
"Watching out for spiking is just normal"
Did you know that reports of spiking peak during Freshers’ Week? Safer nights out should be for everyone. That’s why we’re launching Out There, Safer Together - a campaign encouraging safer, more inclusive nights out across Exeter. Launching as part of Out There Fringe Fest, the campaign is anchored by SPIKED, a one-woman show, written by Saraya Haddad about when said woman did a play she doesn't remember doing. One minute she was in her campus bar... and the next… blackout.
Why the Out There, Safer Together Campaign?
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9% of males and 13% of females say they have been a victim of drink spiking. (Drinkaware)
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Around half of drink-spiking incidents are not reported to police because people ‘don’t see the point’. (Drinkaware)
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24% of women and 30% of men didn’t tell anyone they had been spiked. (Drinkaware)
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LGBTQ+ people are almost twice as likely to report having experienced drink spiking (17.8% vs. 10.6%). (Drinkaware)
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70% of LGBTQ+ age18–24s have been affected by drink spiking, either experiencing or witnessing it. (Stamp Out Spiking)
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41% of reported drink-spiking incidents happen in bars, with 28% happening in clubs. (Drinkaware)
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29% of spiking incidents happen at house parties (National Union of Students)
How safe do people actually feel?
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42% of the general public feel unsafe or very unsafe at night. (Northumbria PCC)
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52% of LGBTQ+ people say they do not feel safe travelling at night. (Galop / London TravelWatch)
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87% of cis LGB+ women and 73% of trans+ people report feeling unsafe at night. (Galop / London TravelWatch)
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LGB+ people would go to bars and pubs (36%) and nightclubs (30%) more often if they felt safer. (YouGov)
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75–79% of UK adults want improved safety procedures in nightclubs and bars. (YouGov)
So, what can be done about it?
We’re not starting from scratch. Exeter already has people and organisations working to make nights out safer. Out There, Safer Together is about connecting that work, making it more inclusive, with special consideration to the vulnerabilities of LGBTQ+ individuals in Exeter. Our campaign has three core aims: Connect, Influence, and Inform.
CONNECT
We’re building relationships between festival partners, venues and the organisations already working on night-time safety. By bringing people into the same conversation, we can share what’s already working and identify where experiences and needs, especially those of LGBTQ+ individuals, can be better understood.
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INFLUENCE
People can experience night-time safety differently, especially those of minority backgrounds, who are vulnerable and LGBTQ+ individuals. We’re creating a resource pack for festival partners and venues to help them think about their responsibilities, their safety messaging and how their existing practices can be more inclusive.
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INFORM
We’re raise awareness of existing campaigns and good practice, rather than trying to reinvent the wheel. We’ll share practical information about spiking, drinking sensibly, getting home safely and looking out for one another. We will start to build a bank of resources on our website, signposting people to trusted information and practical advice before they need it.
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How do we take lived, felt and remembered experiences and still retain agency?
Being spiked had a profound impact on Saraya, who was a University of Birmingham student when she was spiked on a night out in 2019. She’s since turned that experience into a theatre piece, SPIKED, that she took to Edinburgh Fringe, and is now bringing to Exeter on 7th October at Exeter Phoenix. Saraya is offering a FREE writing workshop IF I Speak, creating space for anyone who wants to explore their own experiences creatively and on their own terms. The workshop also takes place on 7 October at Exeter Phoenix, alongside the performance of SPIKED.
If I Speak… Writing Workshop with Saraya Haddad
Wednesday 7 October | 2:00pm
Exeter Phoenix
SPIKED
Wednesday 7 October | 7:30pm
Exeter Phoenix
Book tickets
More safety and support information, and campaign resource packs are coming soon.
If you’d like more information about our Out There, Safer Together campaign or if you'd like to get in touch about working with us on the campaign, we’d love to hear from you. You can email us at: hello@outthere.org.uk.
Alternately, you can sign-up to our mailing-list to keep up to date with our progress.