Spiking has become increasingly common. The Mirror found at least 2,436 spiking cases between 2017 and 2021, including 839 in the last year alone were reported and logged by the police.
Therefore, it is so important to prepare your safety when going out, wherever your ends are.
Photo from Hare and Hounds
Ask For Angela
is a code phrase that will tell the staff you need help. A trained member of staff will be able to help you
If you ever feel uncomfortable seek help by approaching venue staff and asking for Angela
Cover your Cup
Some clubs offer stickies you can place on top of your drinks in nightclubs to prevent getting spiked
Brands are now catching on to the trend such as Higher Baby.
Some charities offer packages too, like StopTopps who offer a pack of 25 for a fiver.
Share your Location
On IOS you can go to ‘find my iPhone and add people. So, if you're going out it’s already easy to share your location with the mandem for precaution.
Entrepreneur Emma Kay has created an app called WalkSafe. It is a bit like having your location on but better because you can give access to chosen friends and family over multiple software.
The platform is expanding its effectiveness with a 300K investment led by Fearless Adventures, eager to keep the streets of London safe following the murders of Sarah Everard and Sabina Nessa.
One Night, Three Spikes
A story shared about a terrible night out vaguely remembered
Waking up dazed and confused on the 29th of January 2022, Pep realised they were in a hospital bed.
“Do you want a full English?”
“Yes please,” Pep responded gratefully to the kind nurse who informed zir cautiously about the incident that occurred the previous night. Pep was told that the perpetrator had intoxicated zir with Gamma Hydroxybutyrate (GHB).
Dawn Dines, CEO of Stamp Out tells us the latest data shows that “Fewer than 2% of spiking cases result in a charge”. Under the sexual offence act of 2003, section 61 makes it a criminal offence to intentionally cause a substance to be taken by another person. Spiking does not have a solo offence but recently the possession of the common ‘date-rape-drug’ has increased from 3 to 5 years and up to 14 for supply and production.
“It took about a day or two to recover... I had to stay in bed all day, it was like you had been drinking alcohol for days on end”.
When Pep told zir mum about the experience, ze was shocked to find out her brother was one of the 5% of male spiking victims.
On the night of the incident, Pep was with a friend called Carey.
“It was the scariest thing ever,” they told me. ‘When you’re in a nightclub setting you’ve had a drink yourself... Hearing about it on the news is scary and then it happens to your best friend. It was very hard to see what ze was dealing with, and its effects on zir…
It makes you super wary because you must always be cautious about whom you’re speaking to. Seeing your best friend spiked is not a nice thing. One minute ze was sitting speaking to me and the next ze was passed out…
My uncle came to help, they allowed him to come into the medical room to help which gave Pep a sense of safe having a known and responsible adult present…
It all escalated so quickly, they were doing all these tests on zir and I was pretending to do them too to help Pep’s confidence with taking them, when you have had a few drinks yourself, you just sober up to be responsible’
‘I still don’t feel that safe going out,’ they told me. If Pep does want a dance and a drink ze now uses “stickies”. They are provided by some clubs including Pryzm.
Pep’s perpetrator was never found and there were two other spikings that night using the same drug in locations across the same borough in which Pep was clubbing.
Our message is to be careful because you never know who is lurking around the corner.
If you have been affected, please seek medical advice and see the following NHS information about what to do next: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/drink-spiking-and-date-rape-drugs/
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