Eastern City Cycle Medics keep people safe at Christmas

Following the success of last year’s initiative, the Eastern City Business Improvement District (BID), along with the City River Partnership, has sponsored and paid for two cycle response medics who will be deployed in the area to assist any member of the public in difficulty or distress.

Over the 2023 festive period the medics treated 116 people out on the street for a range of ailments, and in over 70% of cases the request for assistance came directly from the police – saving officers valuable time in dealing with incidents and allowing them to focus on preventing and detecting crime.

The medics, who are from St John Ambulance, will be active from 6pm to 2am from Thursday 28^th November – the same day as the City of London Police’s 21st Operation Reframe initiative. They will patrol on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays until New Year’s Eve, working directly alongside the City of London Police cycle officers.

Operation Reframe is a monthly deployment to address vulnerability and improve safety in the night time economy, particularly focusing on preventing violence against women and girls. The initiative combined a Welfare Hub/Safe Haven, drugs search dog at Liverpool Street Station, Operation Make Safe to combat child exploitation in hotels, promoting the Ask for Angela scheme in licensed premises and Operation Vigilant which combats predatory behaviour. They were supported on the night by the Eastern City’s Ambassadors, who were there as a reassuring presence to assist members of the public.

The Eastern City BID, in partnership with Aldgate Connect BID, has additionally sponsored the ‘taxi marshalling scheme’ which is run by the City of London Crime Prevention Association at the taxi rank outside Liverpool Street Station. Two marshals are on duty every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10am – 2am assisting workers and visitors alike with their onward journey. This initiative is part of ‘Our Safer City’  a consortium of organisations contributing to the prevention of violence against women and girls & domestic abuse (P-VAWG & DA)

There are also now 39 ‘Safe Havens’ operating across the Square Mile – offices, libraries, community centres and licensed premises with specially trained staff that can provide refuge to vulnerable people in times of need.

Henry Johnstone, Chief Operating Officer at the Eastern City BID, said:  “The City is a great place to visit and we are expecting this Christmas to be increasingly busy with people enjoying all the hospitality the area has to offer.

“Whilst the police are providing their own resources, our input enhances that. We are immensely proud to again sponsor the cycle medics to help ensure that workers and visitors have an exemplary experience here, safe in the knowledge there are many initiatives in place to ensure they get home safely.”

Inspector Ross Morton of City of London Police said: “This is a fantastic commitment from Eastern City BID and goes such a long way to help us and other blue light colleagues deliver a safe City for everyone to enjoy. The critical support from our partner agencies is vital at this busy time of the year.”