How to Set Up a Community Neighborhood Watch

Crime prevention doesn't have to start with law enforcement - it can start right at home in your community. Setting up a community neighborhood watch isn't as difficult as one might think, and it can help guard against crimes that might occur inside your neighborhood, such as petty theft, sex crimes, burglary and auto theft.

The first thing to do is to gauge community interest in a neighborhood watch program. Talk to your neighbors and your homeowners association if you have one and find out if anyone might want to set up a neighborhood watch. Before you do this, it might be a good idea to compile statistics about crime in your neighborhood. How many burglaries have occurred in the last five years? Kidnappings? Property destruction? If there has been an increase in crime in your neighborhood, your neighbors will be more inclined to set up a neighborhood watch program.

Next, set up an initial meeting for anyone who is interested in participation. Neighborhood watch programs cannot be mandatory; they should be made up of interested citizens who are willing to donate their time to this cause. Place flyers on doors and spread the word by calling your neighbors. The best time to set up a meeting for a neighborhood watch program is late in the evening, after people have come home from works and eaten dinner.

During the initial meeting for setting up a community neighborhood watch, carefully define the boundaries of your neighborhood and section the community into specific blocks. This can be easy if your neighborhood is set up with carefully delineated blocks, but more difficult if there are lots of dead ends and cul-de-sacs.

Next, elect a chairperson for your neighborhood watch program. The chairperson will be responsible for setting up rotating schedules for volunteers and for coordinating efforts among all neighborhood watch participants. Often, the best person for a chairperson is a retired individual who has the time to devote to such a task.

Depending on how sophisticated you would like your neighborhood watch program to be, you can set up all kinds of volunteer-run campaigns. First, you might want to come up with a way to educate your neighbors on security systems for their homes. Stress the importance of both house and car alarms and send out reminders for locking doors and keeping children safe from strangers.

You should also be active in educating neighbors about crime waves and immediate threats. For example, if four residents of your neighborhood have had their cars stolen from their driveways in the last two weeks, other residents should know about this and should be advised to keep their vehicles in their garages. Letting people know about incidents of crime is one of the most crucial responsibilities of a neighborhood watch program.

It is usually a good idea to invite a law enforcement professional to your meetings to advise you on the best ways to implement a neighborhood watch program. They are aware of what has worked and what hasn't, and can provide safety tips for all volunteers. A neighborhood watch program shouldn't be an alternative to law enforcement involvement; instead, it should be a way in which all residents of a community are aware of the treat of crime and are willing to call professionals when there is an imminent threat.

Further, there are laws and regulations which govern neighborhood watch programs in every state and county. Ask about signs for your neighborhood watch program and the laws that govern where they can be posted.