Evaluation finds CSP is helping to make Ballymena ‘A Great Place To Be’

These key findings were revealed by an evaluation report completed by Momentum Consultancy on the eight interventions which formed the 2008-2011 Ballymena Community Safety Action Plan and were the subject of a celebration event in the Adair Arms Hotel, last week.

The packed gathering were treated to a breakdown of findings which revealed...

* The Ballymena Secured programme, delivered by Safe Partnership Ltd. at a cost of £8,000, allowed the installation of low level security at 44 homes of victims of crime or those experiencing high levels of fear of crime. The evaluation found that the programme represented “value for money” and an “effective delivery mechanism”. An additional £20,000 has now been levered from DSD and Policing with the Community Fund to enhance the programme throughout Ballymena Borough and to carry out a targeted programme in Dunclug.

* Community Focus Learning were awarded £42,200 to run a three year programme aimed at supporting parents of young people ‘at risk’ of engaging in anti-social behaviour. A total of 37 parents, some of whom lived in the most deprived wards in Ballymena participated in the programme. Referrals come from Probation Board for Northern Ireland, North Eastern Education and Library Board and the Parents and Kids Together programme. Using IT based methodology, the programme develops core parenting skills in a number of areas including behaviour, conflict management and diet.

* The Bilingual Advocacy Service, delivered by Ballymena Inter Ethnic Forum, provided interpreting services in Romanian, Polish, Slovakian and Czech languages and aimed to increase reporting of racial crime and reduce fear of crime among the ethnic minority population in Ballymena. As a result of the support, 5,000 client meetings were held, over 60 home visits undertaken and more than 20 safety clinics were delivered in partnership with PSNI. - As a result of the project, additional funding was levered from Peace III to run a “Good Neighbours event” to which Neighbourhood Watch Coordinators, ethnic minority families in their scheme areas and their next door neighbours were invited to enjoy a social evening with traditional Polish cuisine, Irish and Polish music.

* The Bee Safe initiative attracted participation from 850 P7 pupils throughout Ballymena Borough, who heard talks on quad bike safety, the repercussions of making hoax calls to the Fire and Rescue Service, hygiene safety, safe use of public transport, safe use of electricity and the risks of drugs and alcohol.

* The Local Intervention Fire Education (LIFE) scheme engaged 14 young people who had come to the attention of the criminal justice system and enabled them to shadow fire service personnel during the course of a week. Feedback from both participants and parents was extremely positive with anecdotal evidence suggesting that the aim of fostering a sense of social responsibility among participants was achieved.

* The Drug and Alcohol Outreach worker project targeted individuals who had a chronic alcohol problem with the aim of reducing the incidence of on-street drinking in the town centre. While this aim was not achieved, it was felt that the data sourced to demonstrate impact was not transparent enough. Although this was a very difficult client group with which to engage the outreach worker was able to maintain a steady client base averaging 30 clients in any given month and an average of 16 client contacts per week.

* Meanwhile the Safer School Travel Partnership continues to address concerning issues arising in relation to the safety of school pupils on the journeys too and from school. Work is currently underway through the Partnership to establish a comprehensive electronic database whereby schools can be informed at the earliest opportunity where adverse weather conditions are likely to affect regular bus routes.

* Under the Clean Neighbourhood Programme, over 300 incidents and 2,200 square metres of graffiti have been removed, resulting in a cleaner, brighter environment for Ballymena residents. At subways under the Larne Road link young people have completed outdoor murals to help prevent graffiti reoccurring and have been presented with certificates by the Mayor in recognition of their efforts.

Commenting on the celebration event, Ballymena Mayor Councillor Hubert Nicholl, said: “It’s very important to take a step back from time to time and check exactly how projects are performing.

“At Ballymena Borough Council we are committed to ensuring that by 2012 Ballymena will be seen as “A Great Place to Be” and under the Priority for Place we have undertaken to foster conditions that make Ballymena a clean, healthy place in which to live, work, invest and play.

“Safety is, of course, paramount to people’s quality of life and it seems to be that the Community Safety interventions evaluated under this programme are making a significant contribution towards achieving that aim”.