Organize a Neighborhood Crime and Safety Watch System

With summer coming and children out of school - and with the daylight lasting longer! - it is a great time of year to start a neighborhood watch program. As the mother of four children in a fairly large subdivision, I know that having both a well-organized neighborhood watch along with a "Mommy Safety" group has really set my mind at ease. This time of year is great for neighborhood meetings in the park, which are a great and casual way to get the "Neighborhood Watch" party started! Although the program takes some work to get started and requires upkeep, the peace of mind that comes with these efforts is priceless.

So, what do you need to start a neighborhood watch program?
First, you need to figure out how large of an area you want to cover in your neighborhood watch. Because our subdivision is so large, we broke it into a smaller area of a few streets, so that our meetings would be smaller and the area we would need to cover would be more manageable. Keeping the area relatively small also keeps that sense of community - you are really getting to know your neighbors, and you all share in a common goal of watching out for each others' homes.

After you decide how large of an area you want to include, figure out a meeting spot. With our neighborhood watch, we meet in someone's home each time, taking turns on a rotating basis. We are lucky we can do this because our group is fairly small, but if you have a larger group, scope out churches, libraries or community centers in your area. They usually offer free or discounted rates for non-profit groups, and have large meeting areas.

The next step is to contact your local law enforcement office. They usually have resources regarding Neighborhood Watch programs, and they very often will send out an officer to your meeting to give your group details and answer any questions. Make sure to find out the local crime statistics in your area - all law enforcement offices have these available to the public, free of cost - and usually have this in a map that pinpoints any cluster of crime.

After you have done this, ask neighbors for help. Nearly everyone will be interested in helping in some capacity, and sharing the burden makes the load much lighter for everyone. By having any crime statistics available to you when you are talking to you neighbors, you are giving them a visual representation of the problem, and very often people think there is no crime in there neighborhood. Bringing awareness to the situation is the single most effective way of recruiting your neighbors!

Decide what is best for your neighborhood - a formal schedule or a more informal approach. We decided on the formal schedule and have monthly meetings, which is feasible because our group is small and our kids all play together. For a larger group, this might not be as easy - but with dedication, it is possible!

What about a more informal group for moms?
The Neighborhood Watch is great, but the moms in our neighborhood who are home during the day with little ones also wanted some kind of safety group. As Spring approached, we decided to extend our "Watch" to a mom's group, where we could not only lighten the load of childcare, but also provide a consolidated watch over our children and neighborhood. We all go to the neighborhood park one day a week with our children, where we catch up and have a great time. The other four days of the work week, however, we take rotating shifts - we go in groups of three with all the children (there are twelve) and let them play for about an hour. We return our little charges home and look forward to the next day, when we have the day off and a lovely hour to ourselves! It is a great way to share the responsibilities of child care, build a community of loving moms, and make some really wonderful friends. It also lets us keep track of the comings and goings in our neighborhood, which is important to all the moms in our group.

No matter what approach you decide to take, getting together with your neighbors for the greater good of everyone in the neighborhood really brings people together, garners pride in your community, and allows you to take control of crime in your community. With some planning and organization, you can keep your neighborhood, your family, and your home safe.