Ideas to Make your Neighbourhood Safe

Toolkits, Events and Ideas to Get Started in your Community

Start or Join a Neighbourhood Watch Program

Neighbourhood Watch is a community-based program aimed at preventing crime in residential neighbourhoods. It’s about living a safe and secure lifestyle together with your neighbours.

A good 1st step is to contact your local police service. They likely have a police officer who can help you connect to an existing Neighbourhood Watch group in your area, or provide advice on how to start a new group.

Enlist the help of your neighbours. The best Neighbourhood Watches are those where neighbours are connected and working together as a team.

Organize a neighbourhood informational meeting to give area residents the opportunity to share their concerns, get to know one another and learn how a Neighbourhood Watch program works. Invite police, city council members and others who may have a safety interest in your community. (e.g. CrimeStoppers, Youth Centres, School Boards)

Start a ‘Walk to School Club’

Encouraging kids to walk to school has tremendous health and safety benefits for everyone. It’s a great way to get exercise, reduce dangerous school zone traffic congestion and build friendships among neighbours.

The most important consideration is the safety of the children and adults who are walking together. Identify any risks along the way such as natural hazards, busy street crossings, construction activity, etc. and put safety practises in place to keep everyone safe from harm.

Get the parents of school age children together and create a walking schedule so that it’s a shared responsibility. Find ways to make it fun so that kids and adults look forward to the walking experience.

Organize a Neighbourhood Block Party

A Neighbourhood Block Party is the best way to bring your neighbours together, and start turning your neighbourhood into a safe, friendly place to live.

Here is a step-by-step guidebook to organizing an Awesome Block Party

The two golden rules to successful block parties:

  1. Get your neighbours involved so that you have lots of help with ideas, responsibilities and connections.
  2. Make it fun

Host a Neighbourhood Movie Night

Setting the stage

  • Watching movies outside in the summertime is fun and nostalgic, but your technical skills are required to set up your home movie theatre equipment.

Screen

  • Create your own movie screen by using an inexpensive king size flat white bed sheet. Tack the top and bottom onto thin strips of wood. Drill holes in the top of the wood so that you hang it from the side of a house, garage, big vehicle or make a free standing frame. Renting a screen from an outdoor movie rental vendor is also an option.

Sound and Projection System

  • You will need a home theatre in a box system including speakers and a DVD player that is powerful enough to broadcast outside. You will also need a video projector to connect to the DVD player to project the movie.

Chairs

  • Ask everyone to bring their own chairs. Families can also bring blankets for young children to sit on.

Movie

  • Select a movie that is suitable for all age members at your movie night. A family rated movie is the best, G, PG or 14 A. On-site signage of the movie rating should be displayed.
    Hold A Street Sale (Multi-Home Garage Sale)

5 Things You Need To Do to Organize A Successful Street Sale

  1. Make A Plan
    Get the neighbours who wish to take part in the Street Sale together and make the following decisions:

    • Date of Sale
    • Hours the sale will operate
    • Set a budget for promotion – all homes contribute an equal amount
    • Will there be other activities such as a Lemonade Stand, Hot Dog sales, etc.? Who will organize these?
    • A strategy to discard unsold and unwanted items after the sale
  2. Promote Your Sale
    Assemble a team to create posters and ads (this is a good job for
    neighbourhood youth)
    Advertise in the local newspaper (most have a Garage Sale advertising section with lower advertising costs)
    Promote on social media (Facebook pages, Twitter, Instagram, etc.)
    Create an electronic flyer that can be sent by email to friends and colleagues.
  3. Clean Up After the Sale
    Take down posters and other street sale signage
    Decide what to do with unsold and unwanted items. Consider working together to deliver these to a local Goodwill or Salvation Army collection site, or to a local recycling facility.
  4. Celebrate Your Success
    Finish your sale with a get-together for coffee or a bbq to share stories of the day.