Parks for London has launched the Environmental Visual Evaluation tool (EVE) - a new practical resource designed to help landowners and managers identify interventions to make green spaces feel safer for women and girls.
The EVE provides guidance to help landowners and managers better understand perceptions of safety through an environmental visual evaluation of their parks and green spaces.
It is designed for use by those responsible for managing these spaces – such as park managers or community safety leads – either internally or in collaboration with community groups and stakeholders.
Through a set of structured prompts, the EVE encourages discussion and site observations that surface specific environmental factors that may influence how safe a space feels—such as visibility, lighting, pathways, or signage. By capturing insights that might otherwise go unspoken or overlooked, the findings enable responsive and community-informed action and helps foster stronger relationships between green space managers and their users.
The tool is flexible and scalable – it can be applied to an entire park or focus on a specific area of concern. It can also be adapted for use in peer-to-peer reviews with other professionals, in engaging communities who feel unsafe in green spaces, or in reaching those who do not currently use their local green space to understand barriers and perceptions.
Dr Anna Barker, Associate Professor in Criminal Justice and Criminology, University of Leeds, said: “Meaningful engagement with women and girls is essential to understanding lived experiences, surfacing safety concerns, and informing real change. Co-production lies at the heart of safer public spaces, and by centring the voices of those most impacted, we can design parks that reflect the needs of everyone. The launch of the Environmental Visual Evaluation Tool marks a vital step toward making our parks safer and more inclusive.“
Members of Parks for London’s Women’s Safety in Parks Action Group gave valuable input in shaping the EVE, as well as the London local authorities who piloted early versions in their green spaces and provided vital feedback to refine its format and prompts.
Gabi Howard, Chair of Parks for London’s Women’s Safety in Parks Action Group, and Park Service Manager at Camden Council, said: “I’d like to thank everyone who contributed to developing the tool, and for the generosity and openness of those working in this space—it’s been so collaborative. I hope the tool proves useful to anyone working to make parks safer, and that its methodology can be adapted to suit different contexts and all levels of park improvement.”
