Women and girls will be able to seek refuge in shops if they feel in danger in a town centre.

Almost £200,000 has been secured by Kent Police in funding to help with the project.

KMTV reports on the scheme

The force has rolled out the 'Safe Spaces' scheme in Rochester High Street and several businesses will offer people a place of safety if they are feeling unwell, lost, confused or have been a victim of crime.

They will display window stickers so people know that the shop is part of the programme, and that they can go in to ask for help if they need it when out and about in the town centre.

Staff can then alert the emergency services if required.

The scheme has been launched by the Medway Community Safety Partnership and the Medway Taskforce after more than £190,000 of funding by the Home Office Safer Streets Fund was secured in October 2021.

This money has been allocated for projects running across the Towns with a specific focus on Rochester and Chatham, to help keep the areas safe, especially for women and girls.

District commander for Medway, chief inspector Shona Lowndes said: "This funding has allowed Kent Police and its partners to put in place additional measures and schemes to help further safeguard residents and visitors while in our towns.

"Our officers work tirelessly in our communities, including providing regular patrols within the night-time economy to ensure a continued and visible presence.

"Our streets remain a vibrant and safe place to visit and this new initiative will only seek to support and strengthen this.

"The Safe Spaces scheme ensures that anyone who needs help knows they can walk into a local business where they can feel secure and confident that they are safe and will be assisted appropriately when needed."

As part of the wider project personal safety items have been distributed to community groups and residents.

Clothing and equipment, such as foil blankets, flip flops and bottles of water have also been given to the Medway Street Pastors to help support them when they assist people in the town at night-time. Additional radios have also been distributed to businesses.

This is the third round of funding which has also seen cash spent on a number of different initiatives, including the cutting back of overgrown vegetation to allow for improved natural lighting and increased visibility, the removal of rubbish and graffiti and community litter picking in parks.

Medway Council’s portfolio holder for resources, Cllr Adrian Gulvin said: "Medway is a safe place to live, work, visit and learn and we are working closely with partner agencies, including Kent Police, to help people feel even safer when enjoying everything Rochester has to offer.

"Thank you to the Medway businesses which have already signed up to this new safety initiative."

For more information about how Kent Police is tackling violence against women and girls and safety advice visit here.