An Oxfordshire hotel has linked up with a national charity to promote the personal safety of women staying away on business trips.

The Premier Lodge Hotel, in Banbury, is working with the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, which has found 31 per cent of women working away from home had found themselves in threatening situations.

Measures to promote safety include:

Not putting women in ground-floor rooms or at the end of corridors

Avoiding unwanted attention by handing out room numbers on a card rather than saying them out loud.

Fitting rooms with a deadlock or chain to stop strangers entering at night.

The survey found that 39 per cent of businesswomen from the South East feared being mugged when staying away from home.

Hotel manager Bob Tappenden said: "We feel that we should address the safety concerns of our customers to ensure they feel as relaxed as possible when staying in Banbury."

The Suzy Lamplugh Trust, which focuses on personal safety, was set up following the disappearance of estate agent Suzy Lamplugh in 1986.

Training director Sarah Simpson said: "For some time we have been interested in working with the hotel industry to reduce fear and increase confidence of business travellers. We hope other companies will follow this lead."