Britons are in a state of denial about the potential for violent situations that could affect them. That was the message delivered by Steven Gauge, chief executive of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust to a Reliance Security Services conference of business, risk and security people in Derby in October.
The organisation was established after the disappearance of Suzy Lamplugh in 1986. Her body was never found, her abductor never caught and the 26-year old was declared dead in 1993.
Ironically, Mr Gauge said that because of the media exposure given to attacks on women like Suzy, it was men who were more at risk – and most in denial about the threat. Men were twice as likely to be victims of violence than women, while three quarters of all murders are of men. This was particularly applicable to men aged 16 to 24.
“Men could be forgiven for not thinking they are at risk to the extent they are because it’s treated in a very sexist way by the media,” Mr Gauge said. “But I genuinely believe that the next Suzy Lamplugh will be a man.”
The Trust had recently published a list of the ten UK boroughs that it calculated were the most violent. Mr Gauge said this had drawn severe criticism from the boroughs concerned who argued that levels of crime in the UK as a whole were falling and such reports increased the fear of crime. “But I believe that awareness of crime needs to be improved and the more statistics we have the better informed people will be.”
The Trust delivers training packages to businesses and other organisations which emphasise the need for preparation ahead of the kind of situation that led to Suzy Lamplugh’s disappearance – an estate agent lone worker visiting a property for sale with a man known simply as “Mr Kipper” and no other contact details. The earlier the preparations, Mr Gauge said, the more choices an organisation had to protect their employees from potential violence.
He also cautioned against the current economic downturn, arguing that businesses cutting costs, might see them taking risks with those remaining staff.
The Trust had been successful in influencing legislation to force taxis and minicabs to be licensed and anti-stalking laws. It was also campaigning for an ombudsman for victims of crime because as things stood, people had little recourse within the system. Another aspect of society the trust was examining was the rehabilitation of former prisoners, whose re-offending rates, Mr Gauge branded as “unacceptable.”
For more, visit the trust website http://www.suzylamplugh.org.uk
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