Police & Partners Support Self Defence Classes For Students In Barnstaple

Students at Petroc have been learning self-defence tips thanks to funding from the Barnstaple Safer Streets initiative. 

Teenagers on the Level Two beauty courses at the Barnstaple campus have benefited from the practical lessons which build confidence and help them manage any aggressive behaviour or threat of harm, should they encounter it in daily life.

Led by course trainer Aaron Blake of Union Karate-Do the female students have looked at how to manage confrontation and rehearse scenarios tailored around their course, such as dealing with potential tricky customers. There were also scenarios around nightclubs and the general night time economy.

The students learned about drink spiking awareness and recognising the symptoms and danger signs, as well as safety on nights out and the importance of planning routes home.  They also received tips on how to get out of potentially dangerous situations. 

Barnstaple Safer Streets is a partnership between Devon and Cornwall Police, the Office of the Devon and Cornwall Police & Crime Commissioner and North Devon Council, as well as Devon County Council and Barnstaple Town Council. Funding is being used to improve safety in the Barnstaple area and the money is aimed at tackling violence against women and girls and anti-social behaviour in particular.

Superintendent Toby Davies, Devon and Cornwall Police’s Local Commander for North and West Devon, said: “Safer Streets is a fantastic and very important initiative which supports our work with partners to help keep Barnstaple town centre safe. The funding has been used for lots of improvements, this course being one such example. These sessions will enable students to build confidence and increase awareness on issues such as drink spiking.

“We live in a beautiful part of the world, and whilst crime levels in our area remain low, many people still report feeling unsafe out and about, particularly late at night. It is important that we work together to do all we can to help people feel safe and prevent crime in our area.”

Aaron Blake, course trainer added: “There has been a huge increase in confidence from the girls and they have really built their knowledge and learned simple things that more people should be aware of about managing behaviour.

“Comments from the students included that the course has been amazing and really helpful, they feel more confident and also more aware of some of the dangers that are out there. They feel the learning has been done in a really fun way.”

There are plans to run more self-defence classes in the future, funded by Safer Streets and the college is offering the opportunity to more students.

Head of Student Engagement at Petroc, Sarah Samuel, said: “For our learners to benefit from self-defence classes as part of enrichment has been a fantastic opportunity, giving them strategies to help keep safe on and off the streets, but also raising levels of self-confidence, while having great fun.”

It was announced last summer that North Devon Council and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly had secured more than £500k to tackle antisocial behaviour and violence against women and girls in Barnstaple.

The Home Office is providing £348,632 from the fourth round of its Safer Streets fund for a raft of projects, with £179,126 of match (additional) funding coming from the PCC and North Devon Council.

The projects include the removal of graffiti, improved street lighting, additional CCTV cameras, the creation of a new street marshal team, extra specialist staff deployed to work with people who cause antisocial behaviour as well as training for school pupils and workers in the hospitality trade on staying safe.

Barnstaple Town Centre Manager, Hannah Harrington, says: “When putting together the bid for Safer Streets funding we felt these lessons would help young people in our communities build their self-confidence should they ever find themselves in a situation that makes them feel worried or scared, so it is really pleasing hear the students who have taken part in these first courses recognise they are more confident.

“We will continue to work closely with our partners to ensure Barnstaple is a place that residents and visitors feel safe in and enjoy.”

For more information about Safer Streets in Barnstaple please visit Barnstaple Safer Streets