HSBC UK Intermediary Mortgages senior corporate account manager Tracie Burton offers some sage advice on staying safe ahead of events season

I wanted to share with you a story that I hope will be thought provoking, especially ahead of the numerous wonderful evening events that are coming up in ‘awards season’, including tonight’s Mortgage Strategy Awards, and the many events over what we hope will be a nice summer. 

I think I’m a fairly smart lady who would never intentionally put myself in a situation where I could be in danger, but I admit last December I let my guard down. 

I was attending an evening event, as a lot of us in our industry do. My colleagues and I always tend to arrive together, have a plan of how we will get home at the end of the evening, and leave together. But on this occasion I was not feeling well and I decided to leave the event early.  

My hotel was only a 10-minute walk from the venue and we’d walked it earlier that evening.  

It was pretty cold but, with no cabs to be seen, I was fairly confident I knew where I was going. So I thought it would be a good idea to walk.  

Off I went in my evening dress and high heels, only to find the usual route to the hotel had been locked up.  

It was freezing by then and dark, and I was not sure where I was going. Two minutes in, my phone died, so not even Google Maps could show me the way.   

Passing various people and sights along the way, I tried not to make eye contact with anyone. I was getting more lost by the minute and starting to feel uncomfortable, unsure what to do apart from keep walking.  

It felt like a lifetime but in the 45 minutes it took to find my hotel I was heckled and wolf-whistled, and it seemed people were lurking in the shadows at every turn.  

Fortunately, I passed a well-known hotel and, seeing it as a potential public safe space, I decided to go in and ask for help.  

That spur-of-the-moment decision was definitely the correct one. The staff were great; I think they could tell I was a little distressed at this point. 

They charged my phone, gave me a bottle of water and offered to book me a cab. However, it was still quicker to walk, despite having gone around in circles on my travels that night.  

So, in an act of kindness, the concierge escorted me to my own hotel. Such a simple thing, but I was safe. 

Yes, I got in trouble afterwards with my husband, my boss and my colleagues for leaving the event on my own; even my mum had a go, and rightly so.  

But at the time it had really felt like the right thing to do. I wasn’t feeling well, I didn’t want to inconvenience anyone at the event and I thought a cab would be easily accessible.  

Reflecting on this experience, I decided to do some research and was quite shocked by what I found.  

Since the horrible murder of Sarah Everard in March 2021, there have been almost 250,000 street attacks reported in England and Wales, with 80% on women and 20% on men, so this is an issue that affects everybody. 

We all have loved ones whom we care about. It can be a dangerous world out there, whether they are male or female, and you have only to read the headlines to know that. 

The situation I had been in that evening got me thinking. I work for a bank with branches that are designated as safe spaces, but on that night and at that time I didn’t automatically think of going into a hotel and using it as a safe space. And, if the worst had happened, would I have been aware of different things I could do to protect myself? 

First, I wondered if there was some kind of formal or informal charter that hotels could sign up to, where their door will always be open to help anyone who finds themselves in a pickle – like the Safe Spaces initiative HSBC UK is linked to.  

There are numerous hotel chains and thousands of hotels throughout the UK, but let’s start with London. I’ve approached a number of hotel chains, including the one I came across that night (the Four Seasons), which are keen to support and be part of such a movement. I feel strongly about this and am keen to take it forward, raising awareness. 

With a lot of events coming up over the rest of this year, here are a few things to consider and share with your colleagues, employees, friends, family (everyone, basically):  

• Ensure your phone has a decent amount of charge. 
• Hatch a plan of how to get home.
• Use Find My on your phone and share with whoever you are out with.  

• Tell people you are leaving if you do leave early, and text them when you get home.  
• If you plan to wear heels at the event, get a folding pair of flat shoes if you will be walking home afterwards (and so you can run).  
• Carry an alarm – one I am familiar with is: https://empoweredbyashley.com/.  
• Download one of the safety apps (if you do have to walk alone, use it).  

• Save the Strut Safe number in your phone, or call someone you know and keep them talking on the phone as you walk, until you get home (but maintain your awareness of your surroundings). The Strut Safe number is 0333 335 0026 (Friday & Saturdays 19.00-0300; Sundays 1900-0100). 
• And, importantly, if you’re worried in any way and you find yourself alone, please pop into any hotel and explain your situation. I’m confident they will assist you. 

 Please keep safe and have no regrets. 

Tracie Burton is senior corporate account manager at HSBC UK Intermediary Mortgages 

Additional information 

Apps:  

Life360 – https://www.life360.com/intl/ – Advanced location sharing helps you make sure loved ones are where they need to be, safely and on time. 

WalkSafe– https://walksafe.io/ 

WalkSafe has identified the need for digital solutions that help make people feel safe and secure. Our mission is to bring the world’s safety and security data into accessible apps and platforms, giving users ‘safety at their fingertips’. 

Our app, WalkSafe, does just that, bringing police crime data, community-reported data and soon CCTV and ‘safe zone’ data together, all plotted on maps with information icons, allowing the user to plot safer journeys, understand local crime hotspots and help others make better safety decisions. 

The app also has a human ‘satnav’ feature, which allows the user to plot their walks, avoiding trouble spots, and also invites their ‘circle of protectors’ to monitor them on their journey.  

WalkSafe’s mission is to make everyone’s world a safer place. We believe our apps and our broader company strategy will do exactly that. 

Strut Safe https://www.strutsafe.org/  

Strut Safe was founded by Rho Chung and Alice Jackson following the murder of Sarah Everard in March 2021. 

Strut Safe is an initiative to help anyone who feels unsafe when walking in public. We have volunteers based across the UK ready to take calls and stay on the line with you until you get in the door.