Ask for Angela codeword scheme to help Telford pub-goers in danger

Those in uncomfortable or dangerous situations at pubs and clubs will soon have a helping hand thanks to a new scheme.

Ask For Angela will be rolled out across Telford & Wrekin next month, offering men and women a codeword for when they feel they need to get away.

Posters for the scheme will be placed around bars in the area, letting customers know that staff will be able to discreetly help if someone asks them for ‘Angela’.

This could be by defusing the situation, getting police to the scene or calling for a taxi.

Sergeant Ram Aston, of the Harm Reduction team at West Mercia Police, said it was important that it was done well.

He and his team have been working for several years on making sure Telford’s nightlife is as safe as possible.

Part of their work also includes training staff to spot situations that might be unusual, such as possible child sexual exploitation or domestic abuse.

“We’re looking to launch Ask For Angela in the borough in May,” Sgt Aston said.

“There are similar things across the country, but here in Telford it’s so important that we get it right.

“It’s important that the people who advertise these posters understand what it is, because you don’t want someone coming in and asking and nobody has a clue what it’s doing.

“We’ve got Pubwatches getting set up in Oakengates and Ironbridge, and we’ve already got an active Pubwatch in Wellington and Newport.

"We’ve nearly up-skilled the whole of the borough so we can launch schemes like Ask For Angela in an instant.”

Schemes like this are put in place to protect those who need it the most, Sgt Aston said.

“It’s just making sure everybody knows what it means so we can protect our most vulnerable,” he said.

“We look for these gaps in the Harm Reduction unit and see what we can do about it.

"We work in partnership with the council and local authority partners, environmental health, fire and immigration, and we’re all playing our part to make sure people truly understand what this poster means.”

The Ask For Angela campaign went viral on social media in 2016 when a poster in bars in Lincolnshire was photographed and shared.