Hackney Council has launched a campaign to challenge long-held myths surrounding sexual harassment and get people to “Reframe the Night” rather than blame the victim in the run up to Christmas.

The town hall has teamed up with the City of London Corporation and Good Night Out to develop the campaign which will give specialist training and resources to venues which sign up to the borough's new night time safety charter Hackney Nights.

Good Night Out is an independent organisation on a mission to end sexual harassment and assault in night time venues.

Managing director Bryony Beynon told the Gazette how the campaign will work to make nights out in Hackney safer.

She said: "There are many myths surrounding sexual harassment in nightlife, which all-too-often place the blame on the person targeted, not the person choosing to harass or assault them."

Good Night Out developed the campaign's messaging by drawing from its extensive research and experience in tackling sexual harassment in night time spaces.

"We know from training hundreds of licensed premises that creating a culture of belief, support and accountability is paramount for prevention," added Bryony.

"We'll train more local venues to help them better tackle and respond to unwanted sexual behaviour in their spaces. When we upskill staff and replace myths with reality, we create safer nightlife spaces for everyone."

Hackney Nights launched last month to get venues to address safety concerns and offer resources for public-awareness campaigns focusing on developing a safer night time economy.

The campaign is funded by Hackney and City of London's Late Night Levies paid by local late night venues. These levies allow for extra policing and training.

Samantha Mathys, Hackney's late night levy manager, said: "Campaigns that promote positive behaviour change, like Reframe the Night, will go hand-in-hand with training, resources and additional police presence to help protect local residents, visitors and businesses from crime and anti-social behaviour."