police and community relations

today i was invited to the launch of the new 'safer neighbourhoods' team for our local ward - hoe street.

it was great to be invited along and to see the enthusiasm of the safer neighbourhoods team members. the aim of the teams is to do better than the 'sticking plaster' solutions to criminal activity and community cohesion. that means engaging with the community stakeholders to find long-lasting solutions that create a culture change so that neighbourhoods become safer - not through fortress mentality solutions - but through integrated community connectedness where the neighbourhood feels involved, listened to, and whose suggestions actually are incorporated into larger strategies for community safety.

the thing is, the police can't actually make neighboourhoods safe. while they have some resources to bring to the table and they have a duty to uphold the law, they are one part of a community taking responsibility for the whole of the way it lives with itself.

how a community feels and operates is about the community taking responsibility for itself. walthamstow village is very fortunate to have a vibrant residents association (wvra), and the hoe street ward being given 'safer neighbourhood' status is partly due to their lobbying.

st. mary's church is also part of the local community, and is looking forward to continuing to grow our relationship with the police and the wvra. at some point in the not-too-distant future, we can expect to see some members of the safer neighbourhoods team at church, as they introduce themselves to us.

Tags: police, community, safer neighbourhoods, responsibility