Customer Safety Is Key to Hospitality Sector Recovery, YouGov Survey Reveals
Safety in licensed premises is going to be a huge factor for the recovery of the hospitality sector as it emerges from COVID lockdowns and restrictions and seeks to attract staff and customers, a YouGov survey has found.
Research of 5,050 adults aged between 18-45 in England, carried out between 16 August – 5 September, found they feel significantly less safe in licensed premises now than they did prior to the first national lockdown in March 2020.
With safety defined as ‘where efforts have been made to prevent crime, reduce harm and where staff will support you if you are feeling vulnerable’, the fall in feeling safe was consistent across a wide range of licensed premises from bars, pubs and nightclubs to restaurants, hotels and guest houses, theatres, stadiums and arenas and sports and social clubs.
The survey was commissioned by Police Crime Prevention Initiatives (Police CPI), a police-owned organisation, which works alongside the Police Service to deter and reduce crime. One of its latest initiatives is Licensing Security & Vulnerability Initiative (Licensing SAVI), which seeks to improve safety and security in licensed premises. The survey of adults, who would visit at least one licensed premises in a six-month period, found that the fall in feeling safe was most significant in nightclubs – down from 81% of adults pre-pandemic to 48% today. The next highest fall was in bars and clubs from 93% – 64% respectively. Even in restaurants, where the fall in safety was lowest, there was still a 17 percentage point drop from 98%.
Females feel significantly less safe across licensed venues today compared to prior to the pandemic with the largest percentage drop in nightclubs from pre-pandemic levels of female safety of 79% compared to 37% today – a fall of 42 percentage points. The next highest safety falls for women were in bars and pubs, and stadiums and arenas of 35 percentage points.
In Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Groups and in Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic Groups there were also significant falls in feelings of safety.
Licensing SAVI was developed at the request of the Home Office by Police CPI and evolved following significant input from UK government security experts and licensing professionals.
Mark Morgan, Business Manager for Licensing SAVI, and a former Merseyside Police Superintendent, said: “We believe Licensing SAVI can help lay the groundwork for licensees to improve safety each and every year as they grow their business and attract new customers.”
Contact Licensing SAVI
Email: enquiries@licensingsavi.com
