Crime safety advice issued to men

Teenage boys have been the victims of a spate of recent knife attacks

Crime safety charity the Suzy Lamplugh Trust has issued advice to men for the first time.

The guidance published on its website recommends men carry personal attack alarms and avoid wearing headphones or talking on mobile phones.

The trust says men are twice as likely to suffer a violent attack than women.

It comes as the annual crime figures for England and Wales are set to be released and after a spate of knife attacks on teenage boys.

Trust chief executive Steven Gauge said that three quarters of murders involved male victims.

"Women have got the message about personal safety over the last 20 years. Women have realised what they can do to make themselves safe," he said.

"I think it's now time for men to think more seriously about keeping themselves safe because they're the ones who are dying."

Keeping fit

The advice urges men to try to stay calm and talk their way out of an aggressive situation - and that physical self-defence should only be used as a last resort.

It says keeping fit can help as "good posture, stamina, strength and tension control can all aid personal safety".

Avoiding using unlit or isolated cash machines is also recommended.

The guidance states: "Never assume it won't happen to you. Nobody is invincible.

"Even though the risks are slight, they are there so think about your personal safety and don’t become another victim."

Mr Gauge stressed that personal alarms were not just for women, adding that they gave anybody "that little bit of extra security, that little chance of staying safe if something goes wrong".

He said: "The powerful effect that it has if it's a really loud one, it can completely disorientate an attacker, confuse them, and just give you those vital few seconds, just that little chance to get away."

The trust was set up to promote personal safety by the family of 25-year-old estate agent Suzy Lamplugh, who disappeared in 1986 after showing a client a house in west London.