What is Neighbourhood Watch?
Neighbourhood Watch is a crime prevention and community safety programme for urban areas. It operates as a partnership between An Garda Síochána and the public. It works on the basis that every member of a community can help to improve the quality of life in the area by keeping a look out for neighbours and reporting suspicious activities to the Gardaí.
What are some of the aims of Neighbourhood Watch?
- To improve community safety
- To prevent crime
- To develop Garda and community links
- To increase public confidence in An Garda Síochána
- To foster a caring environment for older and vulnerable people
- To reduce anti-social behaviour, including graffiti and harassment
What are the different roles in a Neighbourhood Watch Scheme?
Normally these would include:-
- The Area Coordinator
- The Street Coordinator
- The Neighbourhood Watch Member
- Young People
It is important to involve young people in Neighbourhood Watch. To this end, there are successful crime prevention and community safety initiatives aimed at Transition Year students. A number of Neighbourhood Watch schemes have involved young people in sport and environmental improvement activities.
Neighbourhood Watch will only succeed with active input from all members. Your actions and support help to make it work. Don’t leave it to others, play a part in any way you can.
What is the Garda Input into Neighbourhood Watch Schemes?
While Neighbourhood Watch is a partnership programme, An Garda Síochána will give an added commitment to its promotion, organisation and support, e.g.-
- We will include Neighbourhood Watch in all crime prevention and crime reduction strategies, including Policing Plans
- We will provide all resource material (booklets, window stickers, survey forms and administration forms)
- We will carry out another national review of Neighbourhood Watch in 2011
- Each Neighbourhood Watch scheme will be assigned a Liaison Garda
- Senior Garda managers will establish Divisional and District Neighbourhood Watch Committees
