Steph Mallas, our Deputy CEO joined the Town Centre Policing team as an
independent audit partner of the Ask for Angela scheme in Huddersfield.
Ask for Angela is a discreet phrase for anyone who finds themselves in a difficult or
intimidating situation on a night out, allowing them to ask venue staff for help without
making themselves more vulnerable.
Staff at venues operating the scheme are expected to offer support without a fuss,
which may include calling a taxi or helping the person to reunite with a friend or leave
the premises. In more serious situations, they will call the Police.
The Ask for Angela scheme was launched in Kirklees in November 2021 and the
Town Centre Policing team have carried out a series of audits in town centre pubs
and bars to see how many are fully engaged.
Steph joined the team, which included the West Yorkshire Deputy Mayor, Alison
Lowe, Counsillor Carole Pattison and DCI Bulmer. A total of about 16 pubs and bars
were visited – no alcohol was consumed!
“It was a great opportunity to really see how staff respond when you ask for Angela,
and overall I was pretty impressed. It was reassuring to see that the safety of
women and girls in pubs and bars is being taken seriously and sensitively”.
PS Holroyd, who led the audit initiative will be reviewing the data from all of the visits
carried out on the night with her team and feeding back to the Independent Audit
Group, which Steph is a member of.