Our nearest and most effective sources of safety and connection are our local communities and neighbors. Communities become safer and friendlier when we work together to solve issues and pool our resources and talents.
Most cities have a public safety system to help their residents tap resources, especially in case of an emergency. The City Council usually provides community safety services and allocates community safety funding as needed.
However, neighborhood safety isn’t the sole responsibility of city officials or the local police. Every community member can play an active role in creating a better and safer neighborhood.
According to the National Safety Council (NSC), accidents commonly occur inside houses, while on vacation or when driving around. The odds of dying are more significant at home than in other areas where people spend their time. A community safety program or a concerned neighbor can prevent these injury-related accidents.
Importance Of Community Safety
No place is immune from crimes, and no home is perfectly safe from accidents. Crime can always happen, and neighborhoods should anticipate it despite how seemingly “safe” their surroundings are.
Community safety is about making people in a community feel secure. You should feel safe no matter where you live, work, or spend your free time. Neighbors can come together and create community safety initiatives to help increase security and vigilance among the residents.
Some of these programs can be a neighborhood watch program where community members watch out for burglars and other suspicious people in the area. It can be community violence intervention strategies that prevent violence within the neighborhood.
Another community safety initiative could be creating a hotline where women can safely report intimate partner violence and other forms of domestic abuse. Increasing community awareness about the dangers and risks possible within the neighborhood will also go a long way in keeping the community safe.
Community developers can conduct surveys to get suggestions about the various community services needed to secure the area. Community input is vital in building a safe neighborhood where every resident feels like a stakeholder.
Keeping Your Neighborhood Safe
Creating a safe place to live and raise children is a community effort. Here are several tips to keep your neighborhood safe.
1. Get To Know Each Other.
It’s essential that neighbors know and trust each other to build a safe place. Caring neighbors can watch your house when you’re on vacation, feed any pets you leave behind, collect mail and packages, and report any suspicious activities around the area.
However, remember that these benefits won’t happen if neighbors don’t take the time to know each other.
2. Keep Yards Well Maintained.
Messy yards with overgrown shrubs provide good hiding places for burglars and malicious individuals. They also prevent neighbors from seeing what’s happening in your house.
Commit to maintaining clean yards where the house entrances can be clearly seen. This will deter any criminals from trying to break into your house and help your neighbors observe if something terrible happens in your house.
Work with your neighbors to keep them clean if abandoned houses or yards are within your area. Don’t give criminals a potential hide-out or escape route.
The local police have multiple neighborhoods to watch over, and it would greatly help them if they knew about your local neighborhood watch program. You can find out about the crime trends in your area and have easier access when you need to report any potential crimes.
You can also share any security concerns you have with the neighborhood. The police can also help you know the legal requirements for formalizing a neighborhood watch.
Keep Your Family Safe Within The Neighborhood
Family safety & health are community concerns. You can’t keep your family safe on your own. You need the support of your neighbors.
Don’t hesitate to reach out within the community and become proactive in community-based organizations, especially those centered around safety. For more articles about keeping safe at home, check out our blogs at Be Safe.
Daisy is the engine behind Be-Safe.org — from content production to product reviews and more. What drives her is the passion to make home security information easily available.
