This Belfast bar’s secret code campaign will allow women to notify bar staff if they feel unsafe while on a date

The Five Points have put up posters in their toilets with a code word to make sure women are protected


The Five Points intends to introduce a strategy to help protect women against unwanted attention and at worst, sexual assault, who are on dates in the establishment.

The bar will put up posters in the female toilets with a code word or phrase that women can say to the bar staff, alerting them of the situation and ensuring that someone will be looking out for them.

General manager Michael Borland of the relatively new bar says the idea was inspired by a vulnerability awareness course he took, saying that “it really hit home for me when it was suggested that in many cases the bartender will be one of the last people who could intervene and perhaps stop something awful from happening to a customer leaving the bar.”

In explanation of the decision, Borland highlighted the importance of being proactive and how worrying about causing offence can prevent staff from taking action, “If you see someone who looks like they are drunk and are leaving with a person they didn’t arrive with, yes; this could be cause for alarm but it could also be something completely innocent and it is this element of ‘perception’ that can cause people to keep quiet so they don’t offend anyone.

“Yes; 99 times out of 100 it may be innocent but it’s just that one time that matters which we can help prevent from happening.”

An example of the posters that will be displayed in the female toilets

With tinder dates and similar apps becoming more and more common, there now comes additional safety concerns for men and women, such as, does the identity of their date match the person they claimed to be online. This campaign is specific to women “who are on a first date, tinder date or even with someone they have known for a short time” and is described as being a “a way of breaking perception by coining a totally discrete, and non-alarming phrase.”

With an uttering of this specific phrase, the “bar server will immediately be made aware that perhaps something isn’t right and from that moment you have someone looking out for you and making sure that you get the assistance you need.”

Borland says similar campaigns have been successful in England and America, and believes that “as venue operators we aim to provide the best in evening entertainment and we firmly believe that making our customers feel safe goes a massive way in making their night memorable.”

He concluded by encouraging other bars and clubs in Belfast to do the same: “To other bars and clubs, we would love to hear from you. For the price of some posters and staff training, we could be really doing our bit to help.”