Crime Prevention Month
Keep It Going
Ways you can extend your crime prevention program or establish it as a Crime Prevention Month fixture
Monitor for Results
Sometimes, crime prevention programs will produce quick results—or at least one or two very positive developments. At other times it may take longer to see a substantial change. When change is slower in coming, it can be difficult to keep people interested in the program.
But there are often small signs of forward movement as well as major changes heralding the success of your program. Increased school attendance, less trash on the street, or more reports to law enforcement are all positive indicators. Be sure to include in your program plans to monitor and evaluate.
Provide Feedback
Give staff and volunteers prompt, positive feedback to encourage and sustain them. In order to maintain their interest, make your volunteers feel needed and productive.
Widen the Scope
A good way to sustain your program is to widen its scope. A Neighborhood Watch group that began because of a rash of burglaries in a community can recruit seniors to run an afterschool center in the neighborhood.
Renew
Good programs also strive to renew themselves by
- Recruiting new members
- Developing and bringing forward new leadership
- Continually evaluating and assessing program success
- Providing new opportunities for volunteers and staff to expand capacities
- Locating reliable sources for some or all of the ongoing resource needs of the program
- Refreshing and reinvigorating partnerships and collaborations
