Minister for Justice Helen McEntee visited Waterford City and met with local representatives involved in the Waterford Local Community Safety Partnership pilot.

Following her meeting with the Local Community Safety Partnership, Minister McEntee commended their work saying, “community Safety Partnerships are a new approach to building stronger, safer communities. They bring the community together with state agencies and other organisations to discuss and draw up plans on how they can make their own communities safer – because they are best placed to know what their own communities need.”

“We’re currently trialling the partnerships in 3 locations – Waterford, Longford and Dublin’s north inner city – and they recognise that community safety is not just the responsibility of An Garda Siochana alone. I am encouraged by the positive, collaborative work of the Waterford Local Community Safety Partnership in developing this approach to achieve stronger and safer communities in Waterford.”

“The Waterford partnership has held workshops and worked on local projects already, and these will be vital in developing innovative ways to improve communities, not only in Waterford but throughout the country. I want to take this opportunity to thank Seán Aylward and all of the members of the Partnership for the dedication you’ve shown in working towards safer communities in Waterford.”

The pilot Local Community Partnership in Waterford is 1 of 3 such pilots established nationwide, along with Longford and North Inner City Dublin.

These pilots are built on the principle that community safety isn’t the responsibility of An Garda Síochána alone but requires a multi-sectoral approach, strong inter-agency collaboration and engagement from the community.

The project presents communities with an opportunity to identify their own safety needs and to develop tailored Local Community Safety Plans to address those needs.

The pilots will run for a period of 2 years, and learnings from the pilot LCSPs will inform the eventual rollout of the model to every local authority area.

In advance of the nationwide rollout of LSCPs, community groups seeking to address safety issues in their locality can apply for funding for projects under the recently launched Community Safety Innovation Fund.

The funding call, launched by Minister McEntee in April 2022, is open for applications until 8 June 2022, for grants ranging between €20,000 and €150,000. The Fund will redirect funds arising from seizing proceeds of crime back into community projects to support community safety. Further details can be found here.

Minister McEntee also visited Waterford Garda Station, Oasis Women’s Refuge and Treo Port Lairge CLG – an organisation working with young adults to facilitate more positive lifestyle choices, reduce criminal activity and encourage progression to further education, training and or employment.

Commenting on the importance of cross-agency collaboration in delivering community safety, Minister McEntee said, “I met with a wide range of justice sector stakeholders in Waterford – from the Gardaí, to the Courts, the Probation Service, a refuge, to the newly established Local Community Safety Partnership Pilot. Seeing on the ground how their work and their services intersect and depend on one another reinforced for me the importance of strong cross-agency cooperation in ensuring communities are safe and feel safe.”

“I am delighted that Waterford maintains the Purple Flag for a vibrant and safe city centre- that is great testament to the hard work and strong inter-agency collaboration between all justice and community stakeholders in Waterford.”