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Personal Safety Guide

The purpose of this guide is to set out what personal safety measures can be taken to prevent and to deal with those rare circumstances when you might find yourself in situations where you become anxious for your safety.

In general terms the guidance follows practical advice given to others who by virtue of public duties or employment meet many people whom they do not know.

The first and most important principle to understand is that you carry the main responsibility for your own security. If you do not take precautions you may put yourself at risk. The particular precautions you should take are dependent upon the circumstances which could make you vulnerable to attack and the situation itself.

General Advice

  • Always have your mobile phone with you and keep it switched on whenever possible.
  • Always let someone know where you will be.
  • Trust your instincts - if you think something is wrong then act on it.

Surgeries

When looking for premises you should consider the following:

  • Try to hold them on council premises such as libraries during opening hours or other premises where there are many other people about.
  • Premises where the names of any visitors for councillors are recorded.
  • Premises with a comfortable waiting area.
  • The surgery room is in view of the reception or public area.
  • The surgery is connected to the reception by an alarm and there is a procedure for dealing with a call for assistance.
  • There is a vision panel in the door
  • There is a swift means of escape and visitors are not able to lock the door from the inside.
  • Never hold surgeries in empty buildings or places where you will be alone.

To ensure the surgery is safe and effective:

  • Sit nearest to the door with the constituents seated on the other side of the table, preferable at an angle of 45°, as sitting directly opposite can be seen as confrontational.
  • If there is no separate waiting room try to ensure the waiting constituents are as far as possible away from those to whom you are talking.
    Make sure there are no heavy items in the room that could be used as weapons.

Home visits

Sometimes you may wish to visit residents in their homes, especially if they are elderly or disabled or if you wish to see for yourself the conditions that are the subject of complaints.

You need to decide whether this particular visit should be made, especially if the person is unknown to you. On occasions you may prefer to be accompanied by a colleague. If you enter the house try to avoid being in a situation where the constituent is between you and the exit.

Always let someone know exactly where you are going and when you expect to return.

Personal callers

This is best discouraged but as councillors’ details are readily available this is not always possible. Holding well-advertised surgeries could help avoid unwanted callers. If a constituent calls at your home do not feel obliged to invite them in, particularly if you are alone or do not know the person well. Make an appointment to see them in a more public place.

Car safety and parking

  • Park as close as possible to your destination and avoid isolated areas.
  • At night, park in a well-lit spot, facing the direction in which you are leaving.
  • Consider whether an area will be dark and isolated when you return to your car.
  • Lock car doors as soon as you get into the car.
  • Take any boxes or bags to the car when other people are around.
  • Do not leave personal possessions or equipment visible in the car.
  • Have your keys already available when you reach your home or car

Attending public meetings/engagements

Some public meetings, particularly on controversial issues, can become very heated and lead to abusive or aggressive behaviour by attendees. You should carefully consider whether you need to attend such meetings. If you do attend:

  • do not attend alone - take a colleague or council officer(s) with you;
  • take note of car parking and safety precautions as above;
  • ensure a clear escape route is available;
  • leave with colleagues or friends.
  • If you think there is a potential for violence you should inform the police in advance.

Dealing with emotional constituents

It is inevitable that some of the people you meet will be angry or upset and you need to be prepared to handle all types of emotion. The most important thing is to remain calm in the face of whatever comes up.

Do not respond to any offensive remarks directed at you but bring the interview to an end as quickly as possible. If the remarks are more general you should indicate that this is not acceptable and that you cannot continue the interview. If this does not elicit an apology you should ask the person to leave.
However you must use your own judgement and if you are alone and in a vulnerable situation, do not put yourself at risk no matter how angry the remarks make you.

The Council can provide training on dealing with aggressive or difficult people if you feel this would be of benefit to you.

Malicious and nuisance telephone calls

You may occasionally get the odd nuisance or abusive call. On rare occasions you may become the target of a persistent, anonymous caller who may have a grudge against you or the council. These calls should be dealt with in accordance with police advice:

  • keep the caller talking;
  • note any clues the caller may provide such as sex, age, accent etc;
  • listen for any clues as to the motive and intention of the caller;
  • write down the details immediately to assist police at a later stage;
  • listen for background noise which may provide valuable information (eg railway sounds, industrial noises, machinery, music, animals);
  • inform the police;
  • inform the council.

Mail/email

If you receive a malicious anonymous letter or email this should be given immediately to the police.

Please consider carefully what you put on an out of office message, it is not a good idea to tell the world that you will be out of the country for a long period.

Social media

Social media is used by more than half of all adults in the UK and is an increasingly important way to connect, inform and listen. However, there are safety considerations for elected members to be aware of.

It is never a good idea to post a message on social media telling the world that you are going on holiday so you may need to think twice about how you phrase your own movements.

Should you tell people that you'll be at an event in Chelmsford town centre at 10am on Saturday? If you are keynote speaker then it’s hard to see how you can't. You may want to spread the word about the event and by all means do. But it’s worth reflecting on whether or not you say you'll be there.

For Example:
I'm going to the petition signing event for greener Chelmsford in Tindal Street from 10am to noon on Saturday.

May become:
If you believe in a greener Chelmsford do sign the petition if you are in Tindal Street from 10am to noon on Saturday.

You may want to tell people that you were there after the event and maybe post a picture too.

The issue of telling people where you are isn't just about the language you use. Smartphones and social media can also do what's known as 'geo-tagging.' This is you using your phone to create a tag on a map when you send a status update. This is something you have control over. But make sure you haven't left it on by mistake if you don't want people to know where you are.

In terms of online safety, the usual rules apply.

Don't make arrangements to meet people you've never met before in non-public places.

Be mindful of being drawn into heated rows by people who are just trying to provoke you. Debate is good and always try and engage, but if you can't walk away. The internet has a phrase for this: 'Don't feed the trolls,' a reaction is what they are looking for. If they don't get it, they tend to lose interest.

  • Always ask yourself what you would do in real life.
  • Remember your elected member code of conduct. That applies online just as much as offline.

General Advice

Be mindful of suspicious or unusual behaviour by people around you, especially near your home, surgery or other venue you may visit.

Be alert to any suspicious package or letter you receive.

Be alert to possible threats arising from your public, commercial or private activities.

If it is identified that you are at risk, do not establish a routine which would enable a potential assailant to predict your future movements, trap you in situations where you cannot protect yourself or isolate you from nearby help.

If you experience any incidents of concern, however minor, this should be reported to the Head of Democracy and Transparency: joanna.boaler@essex.gov.uk or the Director, Legal and Assurance: paul.turner@essex.gov.uk. The Authority can then decide if any action needs to be taken to prevent a similar incident occurring. It may also be advisable to warn relevant colleagues.