Crime prevention work

Crime prevention is not only the police's responsibility. The problems cannot be solved by one department alone. Crime prevention is dependent on broad forms of co-operation. To get results it is necessary to work holistically in close cooperation with the police and all sectors of the municipality, schools, pa rents'associations, volunteers and various organisations. Parents play a key role. It is necessary to get the message through them and inform them of the importance of upbringing and togetherness in these processes. In Kristiansand the experiences of co-operation and holistic competence in this field are positive. It is the strong belief of the local authorities that co-operation between the municipality, the police and citizens is necessary to promote safety in the city and the suburbs.

The present Mayor has given crime prevention work high priority, which means that the chief of police, the deputy chief of police, the CEO of the city and the crime prevention unit meet once or twice a year to exchange information, discuss and to draw up the strategies and action plans for future work. The city crime prevention coordinator is responsible for the work in the group. The coordinator meets regularly in the Executive Council Committee to inform the politicians on the status of the crime situation in the city. The crime group which is a broader group, meets once a month. This group is constituted by heads of the police and the municipal sectors of health and social services, education, culture and technical services, as well as representatives from the probation office and trade and industry. The purpose of the crime group is to monitorand assess the local crime-situation in Kristiansand, and is coordinating the work between the different members.

Another interagency crime-prevention group, originally established to coordinate information on the young neo-nazi groups, has today a broader crime-prevention purpose. The members come from the schools, the child care services, youth clubs, from three local police-stations in Kristiansand and the suburbs, the preventive police unit and from two important NGO's. The group consists of people who know the youths and the crime-situation very well. Their task is to collect and to coordinate information on the current situation, assess the situation and propose measures for both intervention and prevention. They are, of course, still monitoring the neo-nazi scene. The cooperation between six municipalities surrounding Kristiansand has been established. Working together is a key priority in Kristiansand to reduce crime especially among children and youth.