By Rosemary Stone
On 25 February this year, The Sunday Times Magazine reported on the issue of Spiking, calling it ‘The hidden epidemic in Britain’s Bars’. In 2022-2023, the first year that the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) collected data, there were 6,732 spiking incidents reported, 4,643 administered by drink, 957 by needle and the rest by unspecified means. Since a considerable number of cases go unreported, the true figures are likely to be much higher. According to a nationally representative YouGov Poll, 11% of women and 6% of men said they had been spiked.
Interestingly, before this article appeared, Soroptimist International of East Grinstead had begun working on an anti-spiking project with the aim of offering anti-spiking literature and materials to local hospitality venues. Friday 8 March, International Women’s Day, was chosen as an appropriate day for the campaign to be launched with venues in and around East Grinstead. The Club President and 5 members distributed ‘Zero Tolerance on Spiking’ leaflets, round glass covers with a central hole for a straw and plugs to fit into the necks of bottles. The initiative has been well received and is being rolled out across the town.
East Grinstead Soroptimist Club, a branch of Soroptimist International of Great Britain and Ireland (SIGBI), is one of 270 Clubs in 18 countries in Great Britain, Ireland, Malta, Asia and the Caribbean with members numbering around 6,000. Worldwide approximately 72,000 Soroptimists are grouped into five Federations. Local Clubs meet together to make friends with like-minded women, have fun and work on projects that help improve the lives of women and girls locally, nationally and internationally.
This anti-spiking campaign is one of East Grinstead Club’s current projects with the aim of raising awareness and contributing to the stamping out of this very dangerous and illegal practice.
If you are interested in learning more about the Club and the possibility of attending a meeting, please visit our website – sigbi.org/east-grinstead
