More than 150 people join reclaim the night march

About 150 people have taken part in an annual march highlighting violence against women and girls.

Ipswich Reclaim the Night was taken on by the University of Suffolk Students' Union after the closure of Suffolk Rape Crisis last year.

The march saw people walk from the town's waterfront to the Cornhill in the town centre.

Katie Pickard, president of the students' union, said: "Suffolk Rape Crisis asked the students to carry on the work they were doing, and student officers and the staff team are incredibly passionate about making sure it is."

The majority of the 150 participants held placards with messages of anger and frustration that women still felt unsafe

Ms Pickard told BBC Radio Suffolk the march was an opportunity to raise specific issues with local councillors.

"Awareness of the lack of street lighting in Ipswich town and how it does feel quite intimidating for student walking from a campus into town because of these factors.

"That's one thing we really kind of want to shine a light on, the lack of lighting, but also raising awareness in general about how this is still going on 40, 50 years later.

"It is important that our voices are heard.

"This is a problem that affects everyone, it is not just a female problem and we all need to do what we can to call out these behaviours and challenge them."

The scale of the problem across the UK

Data from the National Police Chiefs' Council, published last year revealed:

• More than one million violence against women and girls (VAWG)-related crimes were recorded during 2022-23, accounting for 20% of all police recorded crime

• Police recorded VAWG related crime increased by 37% from 2018 to 2023

• At least one in every 12 women will be a victim per year, with the exact number expected to be much higher

• One in every six murders related to domestic abuse in 2022-23, with suspected victim suicides following domestic abuse rising year-on-year

Shannon Priestley (left) is the student union's women's officer and Lauren Searle (right) is its LGBTQ+ officer. They addresed participants before the march set off

Following the closure of Suffolk Rape Crisis due to a lack of funding, the Suffolk GP Federation launched a new service to support survivors of sexual abuse.

Iris (Individualised, Recovery & Resilience, Information & Support) opened at the start of October 2024.