Dorset gets nearly £1m to make streets safer for women

People across Dorset will benefit from the money, the county's Police and Crime Commissioner said

Women and people in rural areas are set to benefit from a government scheme that aims to improve safety at night.

Dorset has been granted nearly £1m from the Home Office's Safer Street Fund.

The money will be spent on tackling countryside crime and improving the safety of women and girls within the night-time economy, authorities have said.

Improved CCTV is also expected to be installed in Weymouth and Sherborne.

A joint bid for the £964,055 fund was put forward by Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council, Dorset Council and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC).

Part of the money will go towards a Women's Night Safety Charter that will see businesses nominating a champion within their organisation to actively promote women's night safety.

It will also fund around 1,000 theft and burglary prevention packs to mark rural farm property.

Police and crime commissioner David Sidwick said the amount of money was "unprecedented" and that the benefits would be seen across the whole county.

"The range of projects that will receive help is on a scale that we haven't seen before, from providing vulnerable victims of burglary with video doorbell systems to supporting the Pineapple Project in Weymouth with their Guardians project," he said.

"This money will go toward helping more people feel safe and be safe in their homes and in their communities."

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