The co-founder of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust died peacefully at home this week, aged 87. Paul Lamplugh OBE founded the personal safety focused trust with his wife, Diana, OBE, after the disappearance of their daughter, Suzy, in 1984.
Since then, the trust has worked tirelessly to reduce the risk of violence and aggression to people, and to lobby for awareness of lone worker and personal safety, and stalking.
Paul, who had been suffering from Parkinson’s, died surrounded by his three remaining children.
First2HelpYou extend their deepest and heartfelt condolences to Paul’s family, friends, and colleagues.
The Suzy Lamplugh Trust is one of the major reasons there is a lone worker sector and are a determined and driving force in ensuring lone worker rights are recognised and protected.
In Paul’s honour, this blog will recount Suzy’s story, the work of the trust, and how you can get involved.
Suzy Lamplugh
By all accounts of those who knew her, Suzy was a bubbly, vibrant woman who lived life to the full. Bright and ambitious, she was working in an Estate Agents in Fulham when she went to show a man around a property and was never seen again.
On the 28th July 1986, Suzy went to what she believed was a regular appointment with a Mr. Kipper.
She was last seen walking away from the house where she was meeting Mr. Kipper with a man at 1pm.
When she did not return to work, her employer rang Suzy’s mother, Diana, to find if she had gone straight home.
‘Do you have any idea where your daughter might be Mrs Lamplugh? We wondered whether she could have called into home for lunch. I don’t want to worry you, Mrs Lamplugh …. but Susannah left to show a house to a client just before lunch and she has not returned. We just wanted to check anywhere we could.’
At 6:45pm, she was reported missing to the police.
Over the next few days, weeks, and months the police and Suzy’s family searched for her and chased leads, but to no avail.
Suzy was legally declared dead in 1993. To this day, no one has ever seen or heard anything else of Suzy.
The Legacy and Personal Safety
Four months after the disappearance, showing what must have been a huge feat of emotional endurance, Paul and Diana Lamplugh, Suzy parents, set up the trust to raise awareness of personal safety.
At the time, there was no personal safety sector, and people were not taught how to protect themselves.
Diana was quoted in a Sun Interview as saying; “Suzy did know how to live life fully, but no-one taught her how to be safe.”
Diana became a spokesperson for the trust, whilst Paul worked in the background to raise funds and managing staff. Diana toured the country teaching personal safety to school children.
Since its conceptions, the trust has been instrumental in changing the language and landscape of personal safety.
As a lone worker device providers, the First2HelpYou team have all worked closely with the Suzy Lamplugh trust over the years, both attending personal safety training and delivering it on behalf of them. In 2008, the trust set up the Lone Worker Directory to inform business about where lone worker safety devices could be bought from.
Not only were they instrumental in bringing about awareness of lone worker safety, but they also have raised awareness of stalking.
In 2010, they set up the National Stalking Helpline-the first of its kind in the world. A year later they launched the National Awareness stalking Day, which was later extended to a week.
They also set up what was to become Missing People-the national helpline to report missing people, and successfully lobbied for the Private Hire Vehicles Act to ensure minicabs are licensed. Furthermore, the trust was instrumental in bringing about the Protection from Harassment Act.
To this day, they are still running appeals, awareness campaigns, and lobbying for change.
How you Can Get Involved
The Suzy Lamplugh Trust regularly fund raises and campaigns for personal safety awareness.
They are taking part in a 10K run to raise funds, and First2HelpYou are getting involved by running too. Well, some of us are! Nick and Alicia will be dusting off their trainers and joining in. Have a look at our blog here to see how you can sponsor us to raise money for the National Stalking Helpline.
You can also look here to get involved in their campaigns.
The trust has lots of helpful advice and downloadable fact sheets on personal safety, cyber security, stalking, and lone worker safety here.
If you are looking for information about lone worker safety specifically, get in touch, or send us an email on sales@first2helpyou.co.uk
