Press release
National Rural Safety Forum launches National Community Engagement Week 2023
Published on
Last updated on
Published on
Last updated on
The National Rural Safety Forum has today announced plans for National Community Engagement Week 2023 – its biggest ever series of events – running from 22-26 May.
Previously run over the course of just one day, this expanded week-long series will see hundreds of events taking place in communities all across Ireland, giving people a chance to get to know their local Gardaí and other representatives in their areas.
Welcoming the launch, Minister for State at the Department of Justice, James Browne, said:
“Everyone deserves to be safe and, just as importantly, to feel safe at home, at work, and just going about their daily lives. I’m proud to say that we live in a relatively safe country. We have robust laws and creative and practical initiatives in place to support Gardaí and local communities.
"National Community Engagement Week is a chance for people from all over the country to meet their local Gardaí and other brilliant people working and volunteering in community initiatives in their area. I look forward to meeting as many people as I can during the week.”
The National Rural Safety Forum is a national collaborative partnership between State agencies and other organisations with a common vision of ensuring people and communities in rural Ireland feel safe and are safe in their homes, places of work, and their local environments.
Each day of National Community Engagement week will be themed, covering different angles of rural living including:
Minister of State James Browne added:
“This is a particularly important event for rural communities. It is the first such event since the publication of the National Rural Safety Plan 2022-2024 and it is the first time that the event has spanned the course of a week.
"This should reassure people in rural Ireland that the safety of every community is an absolute priority for me, the Department of Justice, and our partners in the National Rural Safety Forum.”
Assistant Commissioner, Paula Hilman of the Roads Policing and Community Engagement, An Garda Síochána said,
“An Garda Síochána is delighted to partner with the IFA and other key stakeholders from the National Rural Safety Forum for the National Community Engagement Week 2023. This is our first Community Engagement Week and it is building on the success of previously held community engagement day. The themes for this week are focused on rural living and will help to ensure that people and communities in some of the most rural parts of Ireland all feel and are kept safe.
“National Community Engagement week will provide an opportunity for people from all our communities to meet with their local Gardaí. Members of An Garda Síochána will use this as an opportunity to meet informally with local communities, listen to their concerns and discuss ways to work collaboratively to reduce crime and fear of crime and offer crime prevention advice. Engagement, partnership and problem solving with the communities we serve is the cornerstone of our mission of keeping people safe. Events will take place nationwide and I would encourage everyone to attend and take this opportunity to meet and chat with their local Gardaí. “
IFA Deputy President and co-Chair of the National Rural Safety Forum, Brian Rushe, said:
"It is vitally important that communities works together to serve the best interests of people at risk and the National Rural Community Engagement Week is the perfect platform for this.
"IFA are very pleased to be working with An Garda Síochána and members of the National Rural Safety Forum on this great initiative and are urging all communities to come out to support this programme."
Chaired by An Garda Síochána and the IFA, and supported by the Department of Justice, the Department of Rural and Community Development, Muintir na Tíre, AgriKids, and a range of State agencies and representative groups, the Forum’s focus on rural safety is laid out in the National Rural Safety Plan 2022-2024.
The purpose of the Forum is to develop a nationwide network for the distribution of crime prevention advice, increase engagement within communities and prevent and reduce opportunities for crime.
The series of events, organised by the Rural Safety Forum, is an opportunity for communities to get to know their local Gardaí and local community representatives. All are welcome and details of today’s events can be found on the Garda website: https://www.garda.ie/garda/en/about-us/our-departments/office-of-corporate-communications/news-media/national-community-engagement-week-22nd-to-26th-of-may-2023.html
The National Rural Safety Forum comprises organisations and people with a common purpose of ensuring rural safety. The Forum works to develop a nationwide network for the distribution of consistent highly effective crime prevention advice, increase engagement within communities and prevent and reduce opportunities for crime.
The Core objectives of the Forum are:
1. Community Reassurance
2. Information Sharing & Communication Network
3. Increased Community Engagement
4. Crime Prevention & Crime Opportunity Reduction
The Forum is co-chaired by Assistant Garda Commissioner Paula Hilman and Mr. Brian Rushe, Deputy President of the Irish Farmer’s Association. Others organisations represented on the Forum include:
The Forum, through its wide range of member organisations, seeks to ensure that the safety needs and concerns of all people living in Ireland’s rural communities. The Forum aims to achieve real engagement, via its member organisations, with all people living in rural Ireland, to advance safety and the fight against crime in rural areas.
The Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland identified the crucial need for collaboration and multi-agency approaches with the following principle – that policing and security are not matters for An Garda Síochána alone. Recognising that need, the National Rural Safety Forum brings together a wide range of organisations, including An Garda Síochána, to pursue collaboration in efforts to tackle criminal activity and reduce opportunities for criminality in rural areas.