Waterford was one of three innovative pilot schemes set up to develop community safety plans tailored to the needs identified by the community themselves. The other two are Longford and Dublin’s North Inner City.

Community Safety Partnership explained

The Local Community Safety Partnership is a new government initiative which brings together statutory services, the voluntary and community sector, local councillors and community members to work together to identify and tackle community safety issues locally.  The Waterford pilot is supported by the Department of Justice and Waterford City and County Council.

Community safety is a broad concept that goes beyond just policing and crime. It’s about people being and feeling safe in their communities, and it includes everything from visible Gardaí to safe places for children to play. Community safety needs a multi-agency approach, where services work together to deliver on the needs of individual communities. We also need the community, those who live and work there, to be a part of this.

How does it work?

The Local Community Safety Partnership view membership list ] will give the community a stronger voice in identifying and tackling the issues that individuals, families, young people, business owners and all members of the community face. PPN Representatives make up 51% of the members of the Local Community Safety Partnership, meaning community voices will be the majority.

The Local Community Safety Partnership engaged with the community to identify local priorities and used these to develop a local community safety plan that will be delivered in a collaborative fashion by all stakeholders.

The Waterford Community Safety Plan 2023-2028 is the result of the collaborative efforts of the Local Community Safety Partnership and its constituent organisation, other stakeholders and PPNs Reps on behalf of the community of Waterford City and County.

How often do meetings take place & what is the commitment:

                  • Plenary Meetings min. 4 per year and duration approx. 2 hours. Day or evening. Meetings alternate throughout the county & online/hybrid. 
                  • There are also subgroups you may be asked to partake in.

Useful Information 

 

Minister of Justice's policy paper on Comunity Safety (published June 2021) Interim LCSP Evaluation Report