Communicating Crime Reduction

Developing a communications strategy

Why do I need a communications strategy?

Effective communication is vital to the success of Crime and Disorder Partnerships. 

A partnership may be very effective in reducing crime, but if it doesn’t tell the local community what is being done and why, it is failing in one of its core responsibilities. 

It is very easy for partnerships to focus on immediate concerns such as implementing the crime and disorder reduction strategy and delivering local projects and postpone tasks that are just as important, but easier to put off until later - like developing a communications strategy and delivering effective communications.  

Crime is an emotive issue - any appearance of disunity within a partnership is likely to cause the community to doubt and distrust local crime reduction activity.  

It is essential that the partnership and all its partner agencies give out consistent messages, even if particular decisions have caused debate within the partnership. 

The best way to achieve this is through a communications strategy, which all partners have approved and agreed to abide by. 

A communications strategy should be an integral part of a community safety strategy because it will help to:

• raise the partnership’s profile in the community

• gain community support for the partnership’s work and help the partnership meet its community involvement goals

• reduce fear of crime and change attitudes to crime and crime reduction

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