Businesses across Swindon are being encouraged to play a hands-on role in improving community safety as the borough expands its network of designated safe places.
Swindon Borough Council has launched the initiative alongside the introduction of the UMAY personal safety app, following feedback from residents who said they often feel unsafe when out in the town after dark. Improving confidence in public spaces, particularly during evenings and nights, is a key priority for the Swindon Community Safety Partnership.
The UMAY app provides users with practical tools including journey planning, live location sharing with trusted contacts, interactive maps showing nearby safe places and access to trained volunteers who can offer reassurance or advice. It also allows people to anonymously flag locations where they feel unsafe, helping the Council identify and review problem areas.
Swindon is currently one of only two local authorities in the country using the app, alongside Wigan, as part of a broader effort to improve how safe people feel when moving around the borough.
So far, around 20 safe places have been signed up, including libraries, leisure centres and pubs. The Council is now inviting more businesses, venues and organisations to join the scheme and become visible points of support for anyone who feels vulnerable or in need of help.
Businesses taking part act as welcoming, clearly identifiable spaces where people can step inside, take a moment and ask for assistance if they feel uncomfortable or at risk.
Councillor Jim Grant, Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Partnerships, said the initiative relies on local involvement.
“Everyone has the right to feel safe when travelling around Swindon,” he said. “The app gives people useful tools, but it’s the support of local businesses that really brings this to life.”
Local firms are already stepping forward. Elly Vitale-Ireland, Director of Sugar Shack Bakery, said becoming a UMAY safe place was a natural choice.
“As a family-run café, we believe looking after our community goes beyond our front door,” she said. “If offering a safe space helps even one person feel less alone, then it’s absolutely worth it.”
For UMAY’s co-founder Pauline Vanderquand, the partnership reflects the app’s original purpose.
“UMAY was created from a very real experience of feeling unsafe in public,” she said. “Working with Swindon shows a genuine commitment to tackling fear and gender-based violence and ensuring no one is left without support.”
Businesses interested in joining the safe places network can contact SwindonCSP@swindon.gov.uk for further information.
