By Rhiannon Dunbar
For many women, walking alone at night is something to be avoided at all costs.
With the end of British Summer Time, and darkness coming earlier, this fear becomes only more real – and evening runs are put on hold until the spring.
Imogen, a 21-year-old student, described her discomfort in being alone in the darker hours.
She said: “I always hate it when the clocks change.
“I really enjoy exercising and in the summer I love early morning runs and evening ones.
“I definitely feel this is something I stop in the winter as I do not feel safe on my own in the dark.”
She added that avoiding exercise due to fear, combined with the natural lack of vitamin D, causes her mood to drop, having a negative effect on her mental health.
Paulina, a 23-year-old Social Media Executive from Bristol, has revealed how her experience of being a woman in the UK differs drastically from her hometown in Poland.
She said: “People here don’t seem very responsive.
“They don’t step in when they see something isn’t right.”
She added that the low prosecution rate in the UK for cases of violence against women, including rape, causes perpetrators to feel invincible whilst women are left unprotected and vulnerable.
According to the End Violence Against Women Coalition, there were nearly 68,000 reports of rape in the year 2023, with approximately three per cent of these (2,008) leading to successful convictions.
Paulina explained that in her home country she felt safe to walk alone at night even in busy cities.
She was legally allowed to carry pepper spray for self-defence but confirmed she never came close to having to use it.
In the UK, Paulina feels this is a completely different story.
Now feeling at risk, unprotected, and being afraid to go for a simple walk alone.
She said: “I’ve been harassed and cat-called in broad daylight in the city centre so I don’t even want to imagine what could happen at night.
“When I do absolutely have to go out, I find myself glancing over my shoulder, speed-walking most of the way, not listening to music, and clutching my keys outside my pocket.
“When I finally get home, I try not to turn the light on straight away so that no one who might have seen me come in knows which flat is mine.”
Tying her experiences together, Paulina added: “The clocks going back worsens my mental health.
“I can’t do the things I want to, or even need to.
“I know it would get dark earlier soon enough anyway, but this just speeds it all up.”
Violence against women and girls is a systemic issue, now being classified as an ‘epidemic’ by the National Police Chief’s Council.
Over one million VAWG crimes were recorded in the year 2022-23, with at least one in every 12 women estimated to be a victim per year.