A staged approach to supporting the community safety
Empowering communities brings the community together to listen and respond to community concerns and ideas on how to tackle local issues that impact on crime and safety. The program is implemented in stages over a three year period.
Project progress timeline
Building Safer Communities Forum
A forum was held with the Hume community online in December 2020, providing a platform for young people to discuss local issues and identify themes to consider in the development of a targeted crime prevention initiative. The key themes identified were:
- youth boredom and the activities of substance to engage and support youth
- the importance of employment for young people
- a desire for schools to incorporate education programs and culture that celebrates diversity
- a high level of community pride held by young people, contrary to messaging often portrayed in the media.
Watch the Hume Community Safety Forum Video:
Action Group established
The Hume Action Group was established in June 2021, bringing together key services and other stakeholders. The Action Group is responsible for connecting the initiative to the broader community and overseeing its implementation.
Hume Action Group Organisations
The following organisations are represented on the Action Group:
- Hume City Council
- Victoria Police
- Brotherhood of St Laurence
- Broadmeadows Women’s House
- Northern Community Legal Centre
- Hume Whittlesea Local Learning and Employment
- Banksia Gardens Community Services
- Migrant Resource Centre North West
- Youth Projects
- Kangan Institute
- Department of Education & Training
- Department of Justice & Community Safety.
Common Goal agreed
During a series of facilitated workshops, the Action Group considered the themes established in the forum, local community safety strategies and the objectives of the grant funding to establish an agreed common goal.
The Action Group identified a need to better support vulnerable children entering adolescence in Hume, by increasing opportunities for them to develop life skills in a family and school context, connecting them to culturally responsive family and legal services and supporting school transitions and individual learning needs.
The common goal agreed by the Action Group is that children entering adolescence (8-14 years) develop and maintain life skills, engage in school and have safe, stable and nurturing relationships with parents and/or caregivers.
Coordinating organisation
Empowering Communities in Hume is coordinated by Hume City Council. You can contact the coordinating organisation via Vanessa Petridis, Coordinator Youth Engagement & Pathways at VanessaP2@hume.vic.gov.au (External link)