Women’s Running Safety in the UK: Findings from Runner’s World
Shedding light on harassment, fear, and the fight for safer running for women in the UK.
The 2021 “Reclaim Your Run” report and campaign, a collaboration between Runner’s World and Women’s Health, investigated the widespread harassment and safety concerns faced by women runners in the UK. By combining survey data, personal stories, and expert commentary, the initiative exposed the barriers women encounter and called for urgent action from individuals, communities, and policymakers to make running safe and accessible for all.
What you should know:
The goal was to understand the extent and impact of harassment, intimidation, and fear experienced by women runners in the UK, and to spark a national conversation about reclaiming the right to run in public spaces.
The report drew on a large-scale survey of women runners (2,000 respondents), collecting quantitative data and first-hand accounts.
The initiative called for an end to public harassment of female runners by raising awareness and pushing for cultural and legal change. It urged a shift from victim-blaming to focusing on perpetrator accountability, and emphasized the importance of bystander intervention and male allyship. It encouraged women to report incidents in order to map the true scale of the problem and build impetus for action. Additionally, it advocated for legal recognition of public sexual harassment as a criminal offense through the #CrimeNotCompliment campaign.
Key findings:
60% of women reported experiencing harassment while running, ranging from catcalling to physical intimidation.
25% reported being regularly subjected to sexist comments or unwanted sexual advances.
6% said they had felt threatened to such an extent by harassment while running that they feared for their lives.
91% had changed their behavior in some way as a consequence.
Only 3% of women who had been harassed had reported it.
Learn more: 60% of women we surveyed have been harassed while running
