Community safety

Crime and disorder are issues which concern the residents of Medway greatly. Fear of crime prevents many people, particularly older people, from doing things that they should be able to do safely, such as going out at night. Young people are similarly concerned about their safety when they are out and about in Medway.

It is clear that for people to feel safer, crimes such as violence, criminal damage and anti-social behaviour must be substantially reduced. Effective crime reduction can have a dramatic effect on the quality of life.

The Medway Community Safety Partnership was formed in 1998 in response to the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1998/19980037.htm) which places a duty on the council, the police and other public agencies to form a crime and disorder partnership to tackle problems of this nature in Medway.

The partnership consists of:

• Medway Council;
• Kent Police;
• The Drug and Alcohol Action Team;
• The Youth Offending Team;
• Kent Fire and Rescue Service (www.kent.fire-uk.org) and
• other key stakeholders.

Its purpose is to: develop and rationalise a strategic response to problems; improve and clarify the structures and delivery mechanisms for tackling community safety; provide a co-ordinated approach to addressing community safety issues across the area; achieve the aims of the Community Safety Plan. Find out more about Medway Community Safety Partnership (http://sites.medway.gov.uk/mcsp/).

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