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Women walk in solidarity after rape on trail

Nathan BerresfordYorkshire
Lisa Bedford The picture is angled upwards, looking towards five women standing on top of a grassy verge with a slightly cloudy blue sky taking up the rest of the background. A woman long brown hair and a two tone jacket is walking to the left of the picture, whilst two are stood in the centre of the frame looking more towards the camera. A woman with her brown hair in a bun and a spotted jacket is continuing up the hill towards the rest of the women, with a blonde lady following behind her slightly out of frame.Lisa Bedford
The Women's Safety Walk was set up after an attack on the Trans Pennine Trail

A community walk has been organised in Barnsley to show solidarity with women who are victims of violence.

The Women's Safety Walk was set up after a woman reported that she was raped on the Trans Pennine Trail near Bolton-upon-Dearne on 4 November.

Sisters Lisa and Laura Bedford organised the event, and said it sends a message "that women are standing together, and that men are standing with them."

South Yorkshire Police said the victim has been receiving support during the ongoing investigation.

Lisa Bedford A woman with long dark brown hair, a light jacket and a grey scarf is sat on a wall next to a blonde woman wearing large sunglasses, a grey hoodie and a black leather jacket. They are smiling and facing the camera, with a small black dog in front of them wearing a striped blue jacket. The background is a large body of water and some small grassland and trees nearby.Lisa Bedford
Laura and Lisa Bedford organised the walk together

Walkers will set out from Lowfield Lane at 16:30 GMT on Friday (13 November), and follow a route along part of the Trans Pennine Trail.

Members of Barnsley and Rotherham councils will also attend to hand out safety equipment.

Lisa said: "We are a community that wants to promote respect to all women. If it deters one potential perpetrator, then that is what we are trying to achieve."

A WhatsApp group for the event has already seen some of the members "buddying up" for their own walks, Lisa said.

"It's about people that don't know each other stepping up and offering support."

In September, South Yorkshire Police launched a scheme to tackle harassment of runners in the south-west of Sheffield.

In its first stage, the programme saw officers engaging with local running groups, and increasing patrols in areas where concerns were raised.

Carole Vannucci A woman with very short grey hair is standing on a grassy path in a field facing the camera. There is a large rock in the distance behind her with people standing around it. She is smiling and wearing a blue t-shirt and a black running vest with the racing number 503 attached below her waist. She stands with her hands on her hips with three brown highland cows behind her right shoulder. The weather is sunny and the blue sky can be seen in the background.Carole Vannucci
Carole Vannucci has been a Run Angel for This Woman Runs since 2020

Carole Vannucci leads This Woman Runs, an all-female running community in Sheffield.

"It's the age old thing about safety in numbers. When the days get shorter, we see an uptick in the number of women joining us."

Vannucci said there was still more awareness needed about running at night.

"Harassment doesn't just happen when it's dark, it's year-round.

"Male runners are really surprised to find out that we have to make adjustments on a regular basis."

She said campaigns like This Woman Runs were "not necessarily about the number of street lights. It's about trying to change mentalities one run at a time."

Kate Dale leads the Let's Lift the Curfew campaign, which aims to end the fears women have around being active outdoors at night.

She said: "Women have got a right to get active when, where, and how they want, at any time of day or night."

Research by This Girl Can revealed more than half of women feel unsafe exercising outdoors alone after dark, and 69% fear sexual harassment.

But Dale said she had seen an improvement in awareness of the risks, with many men "acknowledging they have a very different experience; if they want to go for a walk when it's dark, they can".

South Yorkshire Police said the attack took place on the trail between Mexborough Road and Harlington Road, near Bolton-upon-Dearne, at about 14:50 GMT on 4 November.

Det Insp Helen Hughes said the victim was receiving care and support "at this traumatic time".

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