Hamilton City Council has recent carried out, and released the results, for their annual Central City Safety Perceptions Survey. The survey help gather the public’s views on safety within their city and informs decisions on public policy made by the Hamilton Council.

The 2021 results show a decrease in the public’s sense of safety compared to previous years, with 41.5% of people feeling safe after dark – a 14% drop compared to 2020’s survey. To address this, Hamilton’s Mayor, Paula Southgate, is advocating for a multiagency, community-focused approach to city safety.

This includes uniting Police, The People’s Project, the Hamilton Central Business Association, and Police partners, which includes CPNZ. In a statement, Paula Southgate said “It’s not something the Council or the Police or any agency can solve on its own. We need the whole community to work together.”

Currently, CPNZ has three Patrols in the Hamilton region, but none operate in the CBD areas. CPNZ Trust Board Chairman, Chris Lawton, is initiating contact with Hamilton Police, with the intention of establishing a fourth CPNZ Patrol in the area.

CPNZ wants to utilise all of their resources to assist with improving the Hamilton community’s perception of safety. So, Chris Lawton is also beginning work with our other Patrols in Hamilton, alongside Hamilton’s Mayor & Police, to find how CPNZ can better coordinate our resources and assist with the proposed multi-agency plan.

This proposed approach is the embodiment of CPNZ’s motto “Safer Communities Together” and we want to do our utmost to achieve this mission for the communities of Hamilton, and the rest of New Zealand.