Raising awareness of the public’s role in community safety

 

 

Often it takes a critical incident to bring community safety issues to the forefront of the media and public’s focus, however some startling figure released recently have highlighted the shocking reality.

 

In the past week alone; crime prevention through environmental design, domestic violence and methamphetamine abuse has been highlighted in main stream media.

 

The issue of women’s safety in the community was a key discussion point at the inaugural Brisbane Women of the World (WOW) event. The gathering will focus on city design and its impact on community safety.

 

This is an issue that speaks to me personally, as every evening in order to get home I walk through a poorly lit tunnel with poor exposure to the surrounding streets. This is just one example of how the design of urban environments has created hidden pocket in our streets.

 

Caroline Stalker from Achitectus, has told The Australian that cities would probably be very different if they were ­designed by women. Communities across Australia are being encouraged to get involved in the planning of their urban areas, with some council’s now requiring all building proposals to show how they will ensure safe access and exposure.

 

The prevalence of domestic violence is an issue we've all been told to be proactive about reporting, when the number of domestic violence incidents is articulated the pervasive nature of the issue is hard to miss. And due to several courageous women including, Australian of the year Rosie Batty, the public awareness surrounding domestic violence is thankfully growing.

 

According to the ABC, Australian police deal with approximately 657 domestic violence matters every day, which is an average of one every two minutes. When we take into consideration the systemic issue of underreporting domestic violence matters this figure becomes truly frightening.

 

The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research have reported in just two years, methamphetamine or 'ice’, possession has risen by 40.1 per cent. The Australian reported NSW Minister for Police, Troy Grant saying; these drugs are “causing devastation to individuals and families across NSW”.

 

The impact of drugs on local communities, particularly ice, has become a widespread issue with regional Australia feeling the impact particularly hard. But the question continues what can we do within our local communities to combat ice use?

 

It is excellent to see these community safety concerns being thrust into the spotlight, here’s hoping this will translate to drastically fewer incidents.


Join us at Akolade's 2nd Annual Holistic Community Safety on 29th September - 1st October in Sydney to hear more on how to drive safe communities through engagement and technology.

 

 

 

 

 

Having unfulfilled her childhood dream of becoming an international spy, Ellise is loving her position as Conference Production Manager at Akolade. Her favourite thing about the role is that it allows her to stay abreast of the latest news across a variety of industries while constantly learning from experts in their field.