Not everyone is familiar with the role of community safety in housing. But while we work in the background, we play a key part in supporting residents to feel safe both at home and in their neighbourhood.
We’re qualified to tackle domestic abuse and anti-social behaviour, finding sustainable solutions to both of these issues. We carry out risk assessments and domestic abuse disclosures, and we’re trained to recognise the signs of abuse whether in person or on the phone.
We work in partnership
Our local knowledge of the areas we work in help us refer residents to agencies, whether a local charity or children’s services, making sure our tenants get all the support they need. We use our safeguarding expertise to determine if we need to get adult services or mental health charities involved too.
A lot of our work is done in partnership, signposting residents to charities and organisations whose reason for existing is to help end cycles of abusive behaviour. The actions we take after carrying out risk assessments vary, but we often refer a case to the Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) which is a partnership between various organisations. Together we agree on the best course of action to support an individual or family affected by abuse.
When it comes to anti-social behaviour, we work closely with communities to understand why it’s happening and what positive action can be taken to stop it. This can be really simple actions like instilling a sense of pride in the community, to a more comprehensive approach with local police.
We’re here for residents
As a housing provider, we can often be someone’s first point of disclosure, which is more common than you think. We take the time to listen to our residents and offer appropriate support. This can take on many forms, including target hardening – which is when we increase the security of a home by:
- Installing window alarms
- Fitting extra locks for doors and gates
- Installing CCTV and sensor lighting cameras
These tools make our residents feel safer in their homes, especially if that is where they wish to remain. If they choose to move, we want to be there for them by providing support every step of the way – we do this by working with other agencies through a management move process.
If successful, the resident is given a high priority banding to bid on a new home through the housing register of their local authority. We know that moving isn’t for everyone, so we always do our best to help someone remain where they are in a safe way.
We are passionate
We’re very passionate about the role we play, supporting hundreds of residents each year towards a better future. Within the last quarter our team supported 99 people. Although we’re a small team, the work we do is key. We’re here to help people and give them the best chance to have a safe and happy life. We won’t stop until that becomes a reality.
Abri Community Safety team
