Park safety meeting with Islington officers and police.
Following on from discussions with Jo Corall, Nature Conservation Officer at Gillespie Park, we attended a meeting with Islington's Parks Team, Parks Patrol, Community Safety and the local police.
We discussed issues around women's safety in community open spaces, particularly the issue of dangerous dogs following one woman's experience of being attacked and bitten other incidences of women and children's picnics being disrupted by dogs not kept on their leads.
Islington's dog officer Joe Clarke provided useful advice on how to manage your physical response when seeing a dog and ensuring your safety by keeping a safe distance. Joe also explained that his team can be contacted 24/7 on the animal welfare hotline on: 07825098947 relating to any dangerous dog incidents, or for advice, you can also email Joe at: Joseph.Clarke@islington.gov.uk. See also attached list of dog-free spaces in Islington. any anti social behaviour can be reported online click here.
The local police at the meeting discussed how local women can report any criminal activity including dog attacks and incidences of hate crime or threatening behavior. PC Sarah Hussain suggested using online tools street safe to report incidences anonymously online: https://www.police.uk/pu/notices/streetsafe/street-safe/ and the walk and talk scheme where any member of the public can ask local police to join them for a walk around areas they have concerns about and feel are unsafe, learn more here: www.met.police.uk.
Jo Corall, then took us for a tour around Gillespie Park and the Ecology Centre, which has a quiet serene atmosphere, free from the sounds of traffic, with a lovely pond. We understand they offer their space for community events and organise activities for young children, with the park being used for Forest Bathing, which was something new we learnt about! We recommend visiting the park which is at: 191 Drayton Park, London N5 1PH