We’re raising awareness of different forms of abuse over 16 days. Why? Because we can’t address what we don’t talk about and we want everyone to feel safe and supported to seek help if they need it.
We want to start meaningful conversations and highlight the help available to put a stop to abuse, of all kinds, both now and in the future.
Today we’re focusing on target hardening, a method we use to help make homes more secure.
What is target hardening?
Target hardening is a simple but effective way of making a property safer. It helps protect the person experiencing abuse by providing additional safety measures in their home. As well as being used to tackle domestic abuse, target hardening can also be useful in anti-social behaviour cases too.
Here’s a quick summary of the types of security measures we might use to secure a home:
- Fitting additional locks on windows and doors.
- Installing security lights.
- Providing fireproof letter boxes.
- Fitting fences and gates.
- Installing CCTV.
- Changing the locks if agreed by the tenant and appropriate to tenancy type.
- Providing a safe room.
How many measures we take varies on the individual case but anything we do is decided together with our residents. Target hardening enables people to stay in their home and prevents a sense of having to flee to somewhere else.
Our goal is that all of our homes are a safe sanctuary, and until that’s a reality we’ll keep finding ways to help make people safe in their property.
If you’re a resident and would like to speak to our Community Safety team, call us on 0300 123 1 567. A member of the team will be in touch with you within 24 hours. Alternatively, if you’d prefer to speak to someone elsewhere, contact the National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
If you’re in immediate danger, please call 999.
