The scheme was set up in 1997 under the name Safer City and so far nearly 4000 people in the Kidbrooke, Lee and Eltham area in south-east London have used it.
The service is for those who have either been a victim of burglary or attempted burglary, or those who are vulnerable. We don't ask for social security numbers and most people we serve are either elderly or from an ethnic minority and have been referred by the police.
Residents do feel a lot more secure as a result of the scheme and we've had no reports of repeat victimisation.
Our main source of funding is the Single Regeneration Budget, which aims to support initiatives to improve local areas and which this year has given us about £35,000.
The project also gets funding from Hyde Housing Association and the council, and there is some match-funding from the fire brigade and the police. We would like to take the project borough-wide and have applied for the funding to be doubled to do this.
The scheme is popular with official bodies and residents. It has changed a lot in the last few years: we have more stock now and are able to offer more to clients. We've also linked up with a city insurance company that runs a low-cost household scheme for tenants, many of whom have taken advantage of it.
Source
Housing Today
Postscript
Jane Gilbert, project manager at Greenwich Community Safety Trust, talked to Mahua Chatterjee
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