A woman who was followed in the street and also sexually assaulted has spoken out to back the Echo's Reclaim our Streets campaign.

Rebecca Alsford said she was separately followed in the street and sexually assaulted several years ago.

She said she now carefully thinks about where she walks in Southampton and when.

She is keen for more street lighting to be installed – in city parks and elsewhere – along with CCTV cameras, backing our Reclaim our Streets campaign.

The 43-year-old, who has waived her right to anonymity to speak out, said: "A man grabbed me between my legs when I was looking for my phone, he thought it was ok to do that."

She added: "A couple of years ago I was followed home twice in the same night, so now I walk home faster."

Police investigated, she said, but were unable to take the assault probe further due to a lack of evidence.

She said: "When I was assaulted several years ago, police could not take my case further as there was not enough evidence, so a camera would have helped."Beck AlsfordBeck Alsford (Image: Newsquest) Rebecca, known as Beck, was made homeless in 2022 and said she felt unsafe living on the streets and in shelters - but said more cameras and lights in public would help.

She said: “I was sleeping rough in tents in doorframes, and in my experience, there needs to be more lighting in parks, for definite.

“The fact we are predominantly a university city, predators know there will be vulnerable people out there, especially if they’ve had a drink.

“Having more lighting and installing cameras would be great to try and prevent that.”

More on Reclaim our Parks campaign:

 

Beck added there are areas of the city she does not feel safe in, and often walks fast with her keys between her fingers to get home safely.

She has lived in the city for 22 years and her mum lived here during the 1960s and 1970s and has often told Beck it was “safer back then”.

Councillor John Savage said the main obstacle – besides the lack of funds – is the “limited availability of poles and posts” for camera installation.

He said that installing powered posts would “incur significant costs”.

But Beck is keen for Southampton City Council to dedicate some time to making sure people feel safe.

She said: “There seems to be money for the council to spend on other things, but not this.

“Safety should be first.”

The Reclaim our Parks campaign calls for CCTV in all of Southampton's parks.

As reported, police inspector Tim Williams told the Echo one was recently put into East Park.

The city council was approached for a comment.