Building a Safer Community – Community Patrols of New Zealand

Community Cohesion

You may have heard this before, but it cannot be stressed just how much community cohesion has repeatedly been proven to reduce crime rates and boost overall morale within a community. A community where people know their neighbours, are friendly with each other and actively care about each other is a community that is much less likely to face crime and petty acts of vandalism. Building community cohesion isn’t always straightforward, but there are ways of encouraging it to happen. Hosting events at a community centre or even in the local park can push people to meet their neighbours and get together to talk. Simply walking around the neighbourhood to knock on doors and chat with fellow residents can be a great way of getting to know one another and possibly forming some friendships along the way.

Patrols

Starting a community patrol group, sometimes referred to as neighbourhood watch, in your area can help with spotting suspicious activity that can be reported to the police and help keep everyone and their properties safe. It’s also a way of encouraging your neighbours to get involved within the local community and bring people together, which can contribute to the community cohesion discussed above.

Report Incidents Quickly

When acts of crime occur, police and other relevant authorities must be made aware as quickly as possible. Reporting crime straight away assists the police in finding who did it and bringing them to justice. If you spot something suspicious or witness a crime taking place, don’t hesitate to let the police know to deal with the issue swiftly and any further offences prevented.

Gardening

The broken windows theory shows us that when an area looks run down, it’s more likely that vandalism and other petty crimes will take place there. On the other hand, when an area looks well taken care of, it encourages people to look after their surroundings. Perhaps hold gardening days where neighbours help each other maintain their gardens and possibly plant some flowers and trees around the neighbourhood.

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How the Internet is Transforming Communities

Since its creation, the internet has transformed way beyond what many probably could have imagined. It’s now possible to do just about anything online, which is changing our communities in many wa Accessibility One of the best aspects of the online revolution has been the increase in accessibility to educational materials and official forms and documents. Applying to jobs can also happen online. It’s now easier for children to access the materials they need for school. It’s simple for elderly and disabled people to arrange for their shopping to be delivered straight to them. It’s easier than ever for us to contact one another and maintain friendships. Community patrol groups benefit from this with quick access to each other and everyone else in the community. There is also an abundance of resources that is now available to them. Online Casinos Online casinos have also seen a transformation in our communities. Whereas previously, people would have to head to a physical casino or bingo hall to play their favourite games, they can now simply log on to online casinos and receive a casino bonus nz to play with. In addition, it’s now possible to play casino games online with your neighbours, with video calling apps such as zoom allowing people to see each other simultaneously, which has saved many individuals from feeling isolated and lonely during the pandemic. It cannot be understated just how much the rise of the internet has transformed our neighbourhoods. All that we need is now readily available online, with easy delivery to our door. It is straightforward to stay in contact with each other. The internet is helping us maintain connections, increasing accessibility to different services and resources, and allowing us to more efficiently than ever keep our communities safe from harm with simple online police reporting.

Community Activity Ideas

Community patrol groups, commonly referred to as Neighbourhood Watch, aren’t always focused only on keeping the community safe. Some local groups will take the initiative to fundraise for good causes in the community and organise activities for people in the neighbourhood to participate in and have fun. Here are some ideas for community activities that your patrol group could organise. Charity Fun Day Providing fun games and activities for your neighbours is great, but raising money for charity at the same time makes it even better. For example, you could organise a fun day for the community, perhaps at the community centre or in a local park, with different games and activities for both children and adults. Such events are a great way of building community cohesion, which can lower crime and vandalism rates, and you could use it to raise money for a local cause through stalls and donation buckets. Online Casinos Online casinos are one way of having some fun and potentially winning money. Many areas regulate and restrict gambling, such as bingo and lotteries, with licences required to operate games of chance. Suppose you’re considering hosting a community bingo session or holding a lottery. In that case, you could choose to do this through an online casino such as Duelz mobile – which will make getting together to play a fun game easier and keep things within regulatory requirements. Street Parties Street parties often occur in communities during special national occasions. However, you don’t need to have a reason like this to host one. Instead, consider applying to your local authority to host a party in your street so that neighbours can get together and have some fun. Spending time together would create an excellent opportunity to brainstorm ideas on keeping the community happy and safe in the future.

The importance and role of community patrols

Community patrol groups are frequently being established in communities worldwide to keep neighbourhoods safe and promote community cohesion. But what exactly do these groups do? Here we’ll go through some of the different tasks that community patrol schemes carry out. Patrols Usually, the most visible part of any community patrol group is people from the neighbourhood going out on patrol, keeping an eye out for any suspicious activity that can be reported to the authorities and maintaining a visible presence that helps deter criminals. Patrollers are often volunteers who live in the community and are well-known, providing a reassuring face for residents and points of contact for police. Meetings Community patrol groups will almost always hold meetings. These meetings will allow members to suggest new ideas and focus on how the scheme is run. Patrol shifts may be decided at these meetings, and any new members in the community are welcomed. In addition, neighbours may use these meetings to voice any concerns and discuss any recent events within the community. Leafleting An important part of any community patrol group is awareness. Ensuring that the local community knows such a group exists and has access to information on how to keep themselves and their properties safe is a crucial part of these schemes, so members will often walk around the neighbourhood handing out and posting leaflets and newsletters to keep the community informed. Engage The local police will often engage with community patrol groups, allowing them to pick up leads on potentially suspicious activity and address any community concerns. It’s the job of community patrol groups to communicate with the police and other authorities actively.

Building a Safer Community

We all desire to live in a safe neighbourhood where people get along, and there’s a calm and enjoyable atmosphere. Crime, anti-social behaviour and vandalism can ruin the image of a neighbourhood and create an unsettling place for people to live and work. Here we go through some ways you can build a safer community that you and your neighbours can all enjoy. Community Cohesion You may have heard this before, but it cannot be stressed just how much community cohesion has repeatedly been proven to reduce crime rates and boost overall morale within a community. A community where people know their neighbours, are friendly with each other and actively care about each other is a community that is much less likely to face crime and petty acts of vandalism. Building community cohesion isn’t always straightforward, but there are ways of encouraging it to happen. Hosting events at a community centre or even in the local park can push people to meet their neighbours and get together to talk. Simply walking around the neighbourhood to knock on doors and chat with fellow residents can be a great way of getting to know one another and possibly forming some friendships along the way. Patrols Starting a community patrol group, sometimes referred to as neighbourhood watch, in your area can help with spotting suspicious activity that can be reported to the police and help keep everyone and their properties safe. It’s also a way of encouraging your neighbours to get involved within the local community and bring people together, which can contribute to the community cohesion discussed above. Report Incidents Quickly When acts of crime occur, police and other relevant authorities must be made aware as quickly as possible. Reporting crime straight away assists the police in finding who did it and bringing them to justice. If you spot something suspicious or witness a crime taking place, don’t hesitate to let the police know to deal with the issue swiftly and any further offences prevented. Gardening The broken windows theory shows us that when an area looks run down, it’s more likely that vandalism and other petty crimes will take place there. On the other hand, when an area looks well taken care of, it encourages people to look after their surroundings. Perhaps hold gardening days where neighbours help each other maintain their gardens and possibly plant some flowers and trees around the neighbourhood.

How to become a Patroller

Many of us would indeed like to take a more active role within our communities and help create a safer and more enjoyable environment where we can all happily live. However, it’s not always clear exactly how we can do this. So here’s some advice on how you could become a community patroller in your neighbourhood and build some lifelong friendships too. Join an Existing Group A community patrol group (possibly called Neighbourhood Watch) may already be active in your local area. It’s usually easy to identify an area with a community patrol by posters on lamp posts, and there may be stickers in people’s windows too. If a local group already exists close to you, reach out to your neighbours who may help you get involved. Contact your local community centre or even the police department if you’re unsure who’s in the group and who runs it. They should be able to point you in the right direction. Creating a Community Group From Scratch Suppose a community patrol scheme isn’t already established in your area. In that case, you could consider starting one yourself and getting the rest of your neighbours involved. Government websites provide information on establishing these community groups, including how to generally create a safer neighbourhood that all can feel comfortable in. Whether joining an existing community patrol group or creating a scheme yourself, you’ll be doing a great thing to help keep your neighbourhood a safe place to be. You’ll likely forge some new connections with your neighbours too, which will make for a happier and more community-spirited atmosphere in your street. Keep yourself safe as a patroller, and always stick to any laws and rules around how you conduct yourself while patrolling.

Safe Communities and Community Patrols

Keeping our communities safe and free from crime and nuisance behaviour is a priority for many of us. But what makes a safe community? And what can we do to make our neighbourhoods even safer? Here we will discuss both of these things. Safe Communities Generally speaking, a safe community will be a neighbourhood that experiences minimal crime rates and little anti-social behaviour. Sadly, a minority of people can create a hostile atmosphere for the majority, and preventing this is how we keep our communities safe and make them happy places to live and work. Communities are often vibrant areas with a real mix of people from different backgrounds, and it’s living together peacefully that can make for an enjoyable place to be. Of course, the authorities try to keep on top of crime in local areas. Still, sometimes it’s community patrols that can really help to make a difference in a neighbourhood. Community Patrols Across many neighbourhoods worldwide, community patrol groups (sometimes called neighbourhood watch) are typically made up of people who all live and work within a neighbourhood and are passionate about keeping the area safe for everyone. Patrol groups will often organise themselves so that they regularly walk the community’s streets to keep an eye out for any crime or anti-social behaviour that’s taking place. Just the visible presence of these community patrols can deter potential criminals from operating, as they’re worried they’ll be seen and then identified to the police. In addition, community patrol groups will often fundraise and run awareness campaigns to make the area a nicer place to live, possibly organising community fun days and fundraising for local causes close to everyone’s hearts.

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