Smart on Crime in Waterloo Region

Smart On Crime

Advancing the work of social change oriented crime prevention is no easy task. It doesn’t take place overnight and is not accomplished by any group acting alone. We need:

  • vision and action
  • long term thinking and planning
  • collaboration, innovation and creativity

That’s what Smart on Crime in Waterloo Region is all about. It’s a community plan to help us further the work of preventing and reducing crime, victimization and fear of crime.

Smart on Crime in Waterloo Region provides direction for the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council (WRCPC) over the next four years (2010 – 2014). This plan outlines our priority directions, goals and activities. Together, these form the best possible foundation for WRCPC and the community to further the work of crime prevention that gets at the root causes of crime.

This community plan is based on what we heard during a broad based community consultation in 2009.More Button

The consultation was designed to gain insight and direction on these questions:

  • What relevance does a crime prevention council have in Waterloo Region?
  • What are we doing well?
  • What could be done better?
  • How do we get to ‘better’?

 

 

As a result of focus groups and an online survey during the consultation phase, our community affirmed the importance of a community based crime prevention council. The community values the specific roles played by WRCPC as

  • a catalyst for action
  • an educator
  • a connector,
  • a researcher, and
  • support 

Our community also told us to use our wealth of experience and build on our strengths to grow the momentum for social change oriented crime prevention in our community.

Now that’s a tall order.

Smart on Crime in Waterloo Region is our community’s effort to work more strategically and work ‘smarter’ at getting to the roots of crime.

Over the past sixteen years, Waterloo Region witnessed the transition of crime prevention through social development from a marginalized theory to a household concept. Momentum for this transition was fostered by the vision and capacities of our citizens, community and government leaders, and the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council. As a result, social development and prevention approaches are visible in all corners of our community.

We couldn’t be more pleased about Smart on Crime in Waterloo Region and this plan will help us build on the ‘made in Waterloo Region’ smart approach to crime prevention.

To learn more about our approaches, projects and work, visit the WRCPC website www.preventingcrime.ca