‘No excuse for venues not to use Ask for Angela’

The creator of the Ask for Angela campaign says its new charity status will help it support more people who feel unsafe on a night out.

Hayley Crawford started the scheme 10 years ago in Lincoln pubs and named it after Angela Phillips, a family friend who was killed by her husband in 2012.

Ask for Angela allows people who feel unsafe in bars or clubs to discreetly seek help. When someone “asks for Angela”, staff can help them leave safely or take them to a secure area.

Crawford hopes its new status will encourage more bars to take it on. She said: “There’s never any excuse why a venue doesn’t implement Ask for Angela.”

The Ask for Angela Foundation was registered as a charity in October and will be led by Crawford.

“Becoming a charity means Angela is protected for good, and I’m proud to lead it,” she said.

“I thought the best way to protect Ask for Angela is to pull it into a charity and make sure it’s there for people in the future and there’s consistency, free resources, free training.

“It’s just nice to know there is something in place to help people so they don’t feel helpless or feel like they’ve got nowhere to turn.”