Newcastle venues strengthen commitment to safer nights out

As the year draws to a close, venues across Newcastle are continuing to take action to make nights out safer, with both long-standing and newly certified venues completing Shout-Up! training during 2025.

Shout-Up! funded by Newcastle City Council, works with bars, pubs, clubs and live music venues to train staff to recognise and respond to sexual harassment and sexual violence, helping them intervene safely and support customers when it matters most.

VENUES RECOMMITTING TO SAFER SPACES

A number of Newcastle venues have recertified during 2025, demonstrating an ongoing commitment after already completing two years of Shout-Up! certification. These include:

Alvinos; Boilershop; Collingwood Street Collection (Cha Cha Buchi, Howlers, The Social Club, Verano and La Fee); Colonel Porter’s; Powerhouse and The Pink Rooms; Mother Mercy; Newcastle Students’ Union; Northumbria Students’ Union; NX Newcastle; O2 City Hall; Spot White; The Lubberfiend; The Stand; Tokyo; Voodoo (Promoter); Wonderbar, Newgate Street Social; and World Headquarters.

14 Newly certified VENUES in 2025

Alongside this recommitment, fourteen venues have become newly certified during 2025, including:

Bar Luga; Bealim House; Café Mercy; Castros; Popworld; Redhouse; Tipsy Toad, Pickled Toad and Tiny Toad; The Alchemist; The Bridge Tavern; The Grove; The Last Resort; and The Telegraph.

A growing city-wide approach

Including all previously certified venues, Newcastle now has 65 Shout-Up! certified venues, with a further 12 venues currently in the process of completing training.

There are around 1,300 staff currently working in Shout-Up! certified venues, helping ensure that people working in Newcastle’s night-time economy have the confidence and skills to respond appropriately when incidents occur.

By becoming certified, or choosing to recertify, venues are making a clear public commitment to safer nights out, staff confidence and responsible night-time management. Certified venues receive practical training, guidance and visible in-venue materials so customers know support is available if they need it.

Emily Zachary, Director at The Last Resort, said:

“Ensuring that all visitors to The Last Resort can enjoy their time here without being subjected to sexual harassment is extremely important to us. The training we have received from Shout-Up! was not only enlightening but has left all of our staff with a powerful set of tools that they can use to ensure the safety of our customers and themselves. The initiatives taught as part of this campaign, focused on proactive prevention, are clearly a big step forward in tackling this problem, so it's really great to see more and more venues engaging with Shout-Up! We are looking forward to continuing to work with them into the future.”

Dawn Bowman, Engagement, Prevention & Helpline Manager at Rape Crisis Tyneside & Northumberland and Shout-Up! Lead, added:

“What we’re seeing in Newcastle is a real shift in how venues think about responsibility and care. Training over a thousand staff is significant, and it’s a huge testament to the venues, who are choosing to commit to this work and keep it going. That consistency is what helps create safer, harassment-free nights out for everyone.”

Looking ahead, Shout-Up! will continue to expand its work in the North East, with the programme set to extend into Durham in 2026, supporting venues there to take the same proactive approach to safety in the night-time economy.

Licensed venues interested in being part of Shout-Up! Durham can register their interest by visiting the Shout-Up! Durham page.