Safe Communities How to Guidebook Australian Safe Communities

Transcription

Australian Safe
Communities
Foundation
Australian Safe
Communities
Foundation
Au
C
F
Safe Communities
How to Guidebook
January 2010
Safe Communities How to Guidebook
1
Acknowledgments
We acknowledge the generous support and contribution of Safe Communities Canada1 in the publication
of this guidebook. This guidebook has also been written to closely align with information provided in the
‘Guidelines for applicants to the International Network of Safe Communities and Guidelines for maintaining
membership in the International Network of Safe Communities’2 developed by the World Health Organization
Collaborating Centre for Community Safety Promotion in 2008.
The ASCF acknowledges the support from the Injury Control Council of Western Australia (Inc.) (ICCWA) in
the development of this resource.
ASCF contact details
Australian Safe Communities Foundation Inc.
C/- GPO Box 465, Adelaide SA 5001
Telephone: (08) 8303 0480
Facsimile: (08) 8463 4978
Email:
[email protected]
Website: www.safecommunities.org.au
1. Safe Communities Canada. The Safe Communities Canada How to Guide. Available online: http://www.safecommunities.ca/images/Documents/Uploads/
designationdocumentsfinal.pdf
2. Stark-Ekman, D, Svanstrom, L. 2008. Guidelines for applicants to the International Network of Safe Communities and Guidelines for maintaining membership in the
International Network of Safe Communities. World Health Organizations Collaborating Centre for Community Safety, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.
2
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
2
Introduction
7
Summary steps to forming your Safe Communities program
9
Six indicators to join the International Safe Communities Network
9
Steps to form your community’s Safe Communities program
9
Chapter One
Ignite the spark – Engaging community interest and establishing your leadership
11
Determining interest from your community and building your committee
11
Organise an information session
11
Your invitation checklist
12
Securing commitment and forming your committee
13
Chapter review
15
Aligning this chapter with the Safe Communities indicators
16
Chapter Two
17
Look ahead – Establishing your existence
17
Cement your intent
17
Liability and insurance
18
Consider evaluation early
19
Chapter review
20
20
3
Chapter Three
21
Link activities and statistics – Collecting your data
21
Injuries and patterns
21
Gathering local data
21
Targeting injuries
22
Selecting priority injuries and demographics to target
22
Choosing your activities
24
Defining your strategies
25
Developing guidelines, materials and education strategies
26
Chapter review
28
30
Chapter Four
31
Implement your program – Developing your business plan
31
The value of goal setting
31
Business plan elements
31
Application processes to join the International Safe Communities Network
34
Your Safe Communities business plan
34
Interim reporting
35
Chapter review
35
36
Chapter Five
37
Helpful partnerships – Organisations, individuals and volunteers
37
4
The bigger picture
37
Benefits from forming partnerships
37
Potential partners
38
Volunteer engagement and training
38
Funding sources
40
Chapter review
41
42
Chapter Six
43
Communication strategy – The role of the media
43
The role of media coverage in your program
43
Combining media relations and advertising
43
Tips for engaging with media
44
Chapter review
47
47
Chapter Seven
48
Keep the ball rolling – Monitoring and sustaining your program
48
Monitoring your program
48
Flexibility in your program
49
Planning evaluation
49
Process evaluation and results evaluation
51
Applying evaluation findings
52
Chapter review
53
53
Conclusion
54
Attachment One: What is a community champion?
55
5
6
Introduction
Every individual in the community has a role to play in the prevention of injury and the promotion of safety.
Everyone shares in the benefits of safe and healthy communities and everyone contributes to creating safe
and healthy communities.
The Australian Safe Communities Foundation (ASCF) embraces the World Health Organization Collaborating
Centre on Community Safety Promotion’s (WHO CCCSP) Safe Communities approach. The Safe Communities
approach is guided by a set of indicators and processes which has been proven to be an effective means of
reducing injury throughout the world, including in Australia.
The ASCF can help you prevent injury and promote safety in your community by providing support, guidance
and access to international best practice injury prevention and safety promotion initiatives.
Injury prevention is a national health priority for Australia; injuries are the most common cause of death in the
first half of life3 and occur where people live, learn, work and play. In Australia injuries affect the quality of life of
millions of children, young people, seniors and their families. This may be through death or leaving people with
serious disability and long-term conditions. Within a twelve month period, injuries caused more than 9750
people to die and over 400 000 people to be hospitalised4.
Costs of injuries extend far beyond an individual’s medical treatment and rehabilitation costs to include
significant personal, social and economic costs for the individual, their families and communities. In 2005-06
the total economic cost of workplace injuries alone was around $57.5 billion (5.9% of GDP) for the Australian
population5. Other injury associated costs, such as the cost of a person’s life, the cost of lost potential and
opportunities foregone are immeasurable. However, injuries are predictable and can be prevented.
Community safety is achieved when all issues leading to harm, or fear of harm, are prevented or controlled.
It is defined to include prevention of all intentional and unintentional injury, crime prevention, emergency
management and safety promotion. Common forms of injuries include road injuries; fire, burns and scalds;
suicide; unintentional poisonings; alcohol and drug related harm; those related to violence (community violence,
family and domestic violence, and bullying); falls; drowning; and other unintentional forms.
To create safe attitudes, we must consider safety in every element of our lives. This holistic approach provides
the essential ingredient in achieving our goal. Just think of the endless number of opportunities we have to
improve safety – at home, in the workplace, on the road, on the beach, in the park, within your school –
basically, everywhere, all the time.
3. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2008. Australia’s health 2008. Cat. no. AUS 99. Canberra: AIHW.
4. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2008. Australia’s health 2008. Cat. no. AUS 99. Canberra: AIHW.
5. Australian Safety and Compensation Council. The Costs of Work-related Injury and Illness for Australian Employers, Workers and the Community. March 2009.
7
Working together, we can create cultures instilled with safety education and beliefs. Using educational materials,
training programs, safety expertise and innovative ideas, we all have the potential to change attitudes and
build a safer country. It starts within communities like yours.
The ASCF is a national, not-for-profit organisation made up of members and supporters who are committed
and passionate about injury prevention and safety promotion. The organisation was created in 2004, and has
been set up to advocate safety promotion at a national level and to complement the activities of established
injury prevention and community safety organisations and those aspiring to become Safe Communities. The
Foundation was designated as a Certifying Centre of the WHO CCCSP in 2006.
The one goal of the ASCF is to make Australia the safest place in the world to live, learn, work and play
– one community at a time. The ASCF brings together community leaders, small business owners, large
corporations and local agencies to create effective health and safety programs that meet local needs.
Building a Safe Community requires more than drive and determination; initiating change and maintaining the
momentum of your Safe Community for the long-term takes commitment and strong leadership. Resources,
safety experts and sources of funding are just some of the things the ASCF can help you and your Safe
Community with.
This guidebook has been developed by the ASCF to help you in your community as a starting point to establish
and run your Safe Communities program. We recommend you read through this Guidebook completely
before starting work on the first section. Another important resource to understand and continue to refer to is
the ‘Guidelines for applicants to the International Network of Safe Communities and Guidelines for maintaining
membership in the International Network of Safe Communities’6, which was developed by the WHO CCCSP
in 2008. Together the two documents will help you understand the entire process to reach the point of
designation and join the International Safe Communities Network.
As you begin to work through the journey of creating your Safe Community, you will no doubt have questions
and concerns. Please contact the Australian Safe Communities Foundation. We are here to help you every
step of the way.
Telephone: (08) 8303 0480
Facsimile: (08) 8463 4978
Email:
[email protected]
6. Stark-Ekman, D, Svanstrom, L. 2008. Guidelines for applicants to the International Network of Safe Communities and Guidelines for maintaining membership in the
International Network of Safe Communities. World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Community Safety, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.
8
Summary steps to forming your Safe Communities program
Six indicators to join the International Safe Communities Network
Indicator one: An infrastructure based on partnership and collaborations, governed by a cross-sectional
group that is responsible for safety promotion in their community.
Indicator two: Long-term, sustainable programs covering all genders and all ages, environments, and situations.
Indicator three: Programs that target high-risk groups and environments, and programs that promote safety
for vulnerable groups.
Indicator four: Programs that document the frequency and causes of injuries.
Indicator five: Evaluation measures to assess their programs, processes and the effects of change.
Indicator six: Ongoing participation in national and international Safe Communities Networks.
Steps to forming your local Safe Communities program
Step one: Determine interest
Determine interest from your community’s individuals, organisations and local businesses in working together to
improve community safety and organise an information session regarding the Safe Communities model. Ask the
ASCF to give you some contacts for existing designated Safe Community programs. Choose one or two that have
similar demographics to your own community and develop a dialogue with them regarding their experiences.
Step two: Engage commitment
Engage commitment from interested individuals in your community to develop your Safe Communities
committee. The group does not have to be called a committee. Other suggestions include coalition, alliance,
partnership, network or association. The structure of the committee will depend on whether it is part of a
larger organisation e.g. a sub-committee of Local, State or Federal Government. If an independent body the
committee needs to include: chair or co-chair(s); a designated coordinator (preferably as a paid position);
treasurer; secretary; enthusiastic and committed members; and community leaders. If the committee is part
of a larger organisation, a flat structure with a chairperson, champion7 and a minute taker can work well. It
should also have representation from a number of different government, non-government and community
sectors to address community safety collaboratively.
Step three: Form your committee
Consolidate your committee and plan a sustainable existence, in terms of locating an appropriate office
space, employing a designated coordinator, equipping your office and planning out the intentions of your
program – what, where, how, who and when things will occur. This may not involve additional funding but a
reorientation of current resources.
7. Refer Attachment One
9
Step four: Community injury patterns
Investigate the injury patterns and the priority safety areas specific to your community. You will need to identify
appropriate sources to collect baseline injury and surveillance data and strategies to monitor these data
trends over time.
Step five: Identify priorities
Use the data findings to select your priority injuries and demographic groups that your Safe Communities
program is going to target.
Step six: Develop specific strategies
Develop specific strategies, matched activities and relevant stakeholders to address these priority areas. You
will need to develop specific taskforces/safety groups and/or sub-committees to coordinate these different
strategies that address community safety concerns. It is important to map existing services and agencies that
already may be addressing or concerned with specific safety priorities so you can include them in your Safe
Communities program.
Remember that you will need a variety of long-term and sustainable programs to ensure they cover all genders
and all ages, environments, and situations; and have programs that target high-risk groups and environments
and promote safety for vulnerable groups.
Step seven: Develop a business plan
Construct a business plan to give your Safe Communities program strategic direction. This will be an invaluable
tool for when you are coordinating your application and relevant documentation to join the International Safe
Communities Network.
Step eight: Form partnerships
Network and build relationships with other agencies, businesses and community contacts with the aim of
developing formal partnerships. Partnerships, across local, state, national and international levels are imperative
to building the capacity and sustainable success of your Safe Communities program. These networks will
assist you in locating different sources for funding. Your program and activities will also benefit significantly
from engaging help and experience through a well coordinated volunteer program.
Step nine: Communicate your messages
Well implemented media relations and advertising initiatives will aid the success of your Safe Communities
program. If planned carefully, they will prove to be extremely valuable methods to communicate your safety
messages to your target populations.
Step ten: Ongoing evaluation
Program evaluation and continual monitoring processes will ensure your program is always being improved,
targeted towards priorities and effective in achieving its intended outcomes. Continuous communication,
knowing where and how to get help, ongoing data surveillance and thorough evaluation strategies will all
prove essential to sustaining a successful Safe Communities program.
10
Chapter One
Ignite the spark – Engaging community interest and establishing
your leadership
Determining interest from your community and building your committee
Community based initiatives usually ignite from a “spark” of interest. The idea of creating a Safe Communities
program will most likely attract the attention of people already involved in local injury prevention projects such
as a local health unit, government agencies, service groups and others.
Organise an information session
Organising an informal meeting to discuss the Safe Communities concept is the first step in developing a
Safe Communities program. It is important that there is participation from the government, community and
business sector, and do not overlook individuals who may have an interest in safety promotion and injury
prevention.
1. Brainstorming meeting to
identify prospective agencies,
organisations and groups
to invite.
Use local lists and community leaders to identify potential
participants. You can make initial contact with the most important
agencies by telephone to assess their level of interest and ask them
to suggest other organisations that may wish to participate.
2. Determine commitment/
interest to attend an informal
information session.
Ask potential participants to attend an information session to
determine their commitment to support this local initiative.
3. Draft invitation letters from
a senior official in your
community.
Draft an invitation from your Mayor or another senior local official to
this informal meeting.
4. Engage Mayoral support.
Engage Mayoral support by asking your Mayor to sign the
invitations and, if possible, have them mailed out on official
letterhead.
5. Send the invitations to all
health and safety sectors.
Send the invitation to representatives of all local agencies involved in
health and safety promotion and injury prevention, as well as leaders
in your business community.
11
Your invitation checklist
The people you invite to your information session will vary, depending on your community. Use the following
checklist to highlight the groups you may ask to be involved:
•
Local members of Parliament – both State and Federal. (Although you would not expect them on your
committee, it is appropriate to invite them to information sessions. By keeping them in the loop, they may
be able to lobby for particular issues.)
•
Mayor, city councillors and city administrators.
•
The local Chamber of Commerce and Industry or Business Council President, Economic Development
Officer, Business Improvement Association and tourism representatives.
•
Local business, banking, financial, insurance, corporate and union representatives.
•
Community clubs such as Rotary and Lions Clubs.
•
Regional health authority, district health unit and population health representatives.
•
Government departments such as Workplace Safety, Health, Transport and Crime Prevention.
•
School boards and councils.
•
Red Cross, St. John Ambulance, YM/YWCA groups.
•
Police, Fire and Ambulance services.
•
Safety organisations e.g. Kidsafe, Royal Life Saving Society.
•
Local Action Groups or committees e.g. Local Drug Action Groups, local Neighbourhood Watch, road
safety groups, farm safety groups, other injury prevention committees, emergency management groups,
and workers compensation organisations etc.
•
Local hospital personnel including board and foundation representatives.
•
Trade/industry associations.
•
Local religious groups, local sporting clubs or other groups with similar interests.
•
Local media representatives.
•
University representatives interested in project evaluation.
•
Other groups linked to injury prevention, health and safety promotion.
•
The general public.
It is far better to include groups than risk offending them by not considering their participation. Finally, remember
to invite groups or personalities that are valued for their influence, such as elected officials and also members
of the general public who show interest.
12
Securing commitment and forming your committee
At your informal information session, ask representatives from local businesses and community groups to
confirm their commitment to working together on health and safety issues in the community. Identify the
need to proceed with initiating an application for your community to become a Safe Community and join the
International Safe Communities Network. You may require a second meeting to gain commitment from these
representatives.
Forming your committee
Once you have identified a spark of interest towards developing a Safe Communities program and you have
confirmed there is a strong degree of commitment to making it work, you should begin forming your Safe
Communities committee.
Your committee has the potential to be extremely successful in accomplishing program objectives because
it represents broad based community involvement, expertise and resources. Each member of your Safe
Communities committee can contribute knowledge, resources and expertise that is specific to his or her field
of interest.
Membership elements of your Safe Communities committee
Some suggested elements of an effective committee are:
•
Chair or co-chair(s).
•
Designated coordinator.
•
Treasurer.
•
Secretary.
•
Enthusiastic and committed members.
•
Community leaders.
•
Safe Communities champion.
It is preferable if the job of the designated coordinator is a paid position to ensure commitment and consequential
of associated challenges from employing volunteers.
Volunteering, by nature of its work, can entail interruptions and distractions from the job, which would be
detrimental for your program. Recruiting volunteers to stay in the position long enough to get your program
thoroughly under way could also be difficult. Alternatively, there may be opportunities to allocate this role as
a specific percentage of time in an existing outside position. For instance, the district population health unit
may donate one of their staff for 50% of their hours to work as your designated coordinator. ‘Cementing your
intent (office staffing)’ in Chapter Two suggests sources to fund this position.
13
14
Secretary
Your committee
will benefit from a
secretary with the
following attributes:
• Proficient writing
skills.
• Ability to attend
meetings regularly
and take minutes.
• Competency
to handle
all incoming
and outgoing
correspondence
promptly.
Treasurer
This individual should
have a business
background.
Desirable
competencies of the
treasurer include:
• Ability to maintain
accurate financial
records.
• Capacity to
work with the
fundraising
component of
your committee.
• Provide relevant
reports to your
committee.
Designated
coordinator
Skills required for the
position of designated
coordinator include:
• Strong community
development skills
– essential for
networking.
• Good
organisational
skills, used for
establishing
the goals and
objectives of
your program in
consultation with
other members.
• An ability to
communicate
effectively with all
members of the
Safe Communities
committee.
• Technical skills
such as internet
and computer.
• Motivational
abilities.
• Committed
ability to see a
project through to
completion.
Enthusiasm reliability
and consistency.
Chair/co-chair(s)
These individuals take
responsibility and
leadership for your
Safe Communities
committee.
The chair should be:
• Influential and
respected.
• Credible and
visible in your
community.
• Have connections
to numerous
other community
agencies.
• Be proficient at
leading others.
• Organised and
effective time
managers.
• A good
communicator.
Your committee
members will
provide the support
structure of your
Safe Communities
committee and are
vital to your project.
Committee members
are responsible for:
• Driving the
program.
• Implementing
the objectives
and strategies of
the committee’s
business plan.
• Measuring and
evaluating the
effectiveness of
these strategies
and objectives.
Both private and
public organisations
must be contacted
when identifying
people willing to join
and contribute to your
committee.
Start with a list of
agencies, and ask
more people to join
than you need. Note
that your volunteer
numbers will most
likely decrease, as
your program gets
under way.
Elected officials
provide a powerful
incentive for
community support.
Involve your Mayor,
and/or other influential
people in your
Safe Communities
committee.
Keep these
stakeholders informed
of your progress
to help maintain
momentum throughout
the program
development process.
Enthusiastic &
Community leaders
committed members
The table below provides brief descriptions of these roles, desirable characteristics to look for when filling the positions and other useful tips.
Managing a Safe Communities committee and getting the best results from this team can be delicate,
frustrating, exciting, rewarding and discouraging all at once.
The table below outlines helpful issues to consider when selecting your Safe Communities committee
members:
Engage your local media
Local media may be important to your program but may not be able to
attend all your Safe Communities committee meetings. Be sure to keep
the media well informed at every stage of your program’s development.
For specific information and tips on public relation activities and gaining
media support for your program, refer to the chapter six of this guidebook.
Contact corporate
supporters
Contact the local or regional managers from businesses within your
community.
Involve a mixture of
stakeholders
Aim for a mix of professions and disciplines in your committee structure.
This will produce a multi-disciplinary approach to your Safe Communities
program.
Consider non-traditional
agencies and groups
For example, insurance companies are beginning to take an active role in
injury prevention. Those offering car insurance may be very interested in
joining road safety efforts.
Aim for quality, not
quantity
It is not the quantity of Safe Communities committee members that
is important, but the quality of their input. A few energetic people can
accomplish a great deal.
Chapter review
Before leaving this section, double check you have covered all the steps when it comes to determining
interest, and building your committee:
•
Do you have support for your Safe Communities program from your Mayor, community leaders/champions,
Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other visible organisations?
•
Did you invite a representative from the ASCF to your presentation? Remember, the ASCF is able to help
with promotional articles and speaking engagements where possible.
•
Does your Safe Communities committee include representatives from both private and public sectors?
•
Does your Safe Communities committee reflect the need of your program i.e. is there consensus on its
format, membership and business plan?
•
Have you made contact with representatives from businesses in your local area?
15
Tips to remember
•
When developing your Safe Communities committee, involve both public and business sector participants
and the general community.
•
Involving local business and corporate supporters as full partners can represent a key funding difference
for Safe Communities initiatives that are developed out of community interest.
•
Local businesses often have a wealth of in-house safety expertise and resources. These groups make
strong supporters of Safe Communities programs.
•
As your program gets underway, don’t let declining participation alarm you. It is a natural reaction as your
program becomes more focused.
•
It is recommended that the position of chair have a term of office of two years, followed by a term as past
chair. This will ensure consistency in leadership and continuity for succession planning.
Indicator one An infrastructure based on partnership and collaborations, governed by a cross-sectional
Engaging interest from your community, involving community leaders and establishing your Safe Communities
committee should give your program good direction to meet the minimal criteria for indicator one. Your
committee will have representation from a number of different community sectors to address community
safety collaboratively. Processes undertaken to form this committee will help to ensure your program can be
sustained and remain effective in preventing injury, reducing harm and promoting safe practices.
However, it is imperative to understand that further task groups or sub-committees will need to be created to
address specific safety areas, once priority targets are decided. There will probably already be many existing
groups in your community that can be utilised here. The Safe Communities committee will help coordinate
them in ways to work collaboratively for the better of your community.
Examples of the most common areas for task force groups include:
•
Traffic safety.
•
Home safety.
•
Work safety.
•
Sport safety.
•
School safety.
•
Safety in public places.
•
Safety for seniors.
•
Safety for children.
•
Crime and violence prevention.
•
Suicide prevention.
•
Injury surveillance.
16
Chapter Two
Look ahead – Establishing your existence
Cement your intent
It is important to take time and research your options when establishing your office, hiring staff and buying equipment.
Use the tips in the chart below as a guide to help you when planning out your office and making decisions.
Office location
Office staffing
Office equipment
Consider the following
organisations for office locations:
• Town Hall.
• Red Cross.
• Chamber of Commerce and
Industry.
• Local Government.
• Fire Department.
• Department of Education.
• Population health unit.
• Corporate supporters.
Aim to have office space
donated to your Safe
Communities effort.
Public buildings may have empty
space that owners may be
willing to donate. While potential
landlords may include a proviso
that you must move if they find a
paying tenant, once they see the
benefits to their community of a
Safe Communities program, they
may be willing to allow you to stay
on indefinitely.
Consider using a post office box
as your mailing address to avoid
having to change postal address
each time your office moves.
Arrange for signage outside your
office/building to attract attention,
promote your Safe Community
program and acknowledge the
donation of the space.
Designated coordinator.
Consider the following
organisations for funding
resources:
• Centrelink has some
programs available that
encourages the community to
find work for people who are
collecting social welfare.
• Many universities have
industry placement programs
to give students opportunities
for work experience. These
institutions actively look for
student placements on a
semester basis.
• Local Government
authorities often have a Safe
Communities program as part
of their core business.
• Business or corporate entities.
Essential items include:
• A desk.
• Filing cabinet.
• Telephone.
• Chairs.
• Worktable.
• Bookshelf.
• Computer.
• Access to email and internet.
• Access to a printer, fax
machine and photocopier.
Investigate all the options before
you purchase office equipment.
The same organisations that have
spare office space may also have
surplus office equipment and
furniture to donate or sell.
17
Liability and insurance
Some of the types of insurance you need to consider include:
Public liability
Public liability insurance protects you and your business against the financial risk of being found liable to a third
party for death or injury, loss or damage of property or ‘pure economic’ loss resulting from your negligence.
Professional indemnity
Professional indemnity insurance protects you from legal action taken for losses incurred as a result of your
advice. It provides indemnity cover if your client suffers a loss – material, financial or physical – directly attributed
to negligent acts.
Product liability
If you sell, supply or deliver goods, even in the form of repair or service, you may need cover against claims
of goods causing injury or damage. Product liability insurance covers damage or injury caused to another
business or person by the failure of your product or the product you are selling.
For further information on insurance in your state visit:
http://www.business.gov.au/Business+Entry+Point/Business+Topics/Insurance/Types+of+insurance/
Liability+insurance.htm or contact your local insurance broker.
“
If you sell, supply or deliver
goods, even in the form of repair
or service, you may need cover
against claims of goods causing
injury or damage.
18
”
Consider evaluation early
Evaluation is a tool used to measure how well programs are being implemented and how well you achieved
your goals. It is imperative that you consider evaluation early when you are establishing your program because
you will often be asked for a valid evaluation when applying for funds from previous and new supporters.
Incorporating evaluation right from the start is also a helpful way to give your program direction.
Consider ‘who, where, what, when and how’ when building evaluation into your program:
What?
•
•
•
•
What is the purpose of the program?
What do we intend to do?
What activities will we promote and carry out?
What information do we need?
Where?
•
•
Where are we now?
Where do we want to be?
How?
•
•
•
How will we help the target group?
How much will it cost?
How will we show what we have done?
Who?
•
•
•
•
Who is our target group?
Who needs this program?
Who are the stakeholders?
Who has the information we need?
When?
•
When will we be finished?
As the work of the committee continues you will be working towards being able to answer the following three
questions:
•
How much did we do? – Quantity.
•
How well did we do it? – Quality, timeliness, accessibility, cost.
•
Is anyone better off? – How are people’s lives improved –
•
Improved skills/knowledge.
•
Changed attitudes/opinions.
•
Changed behaviour.
•
Reductions in injury rates.
•
And/or improved circumstances indicated through statistics, perceptions and strength of partnerships.
19
Chapter review
Before leaving this section, double check the following:
1. Have you investigated all options for donated office space?
2. Is signage in place outside your office location?
3. Have you talked to government and/or other funding sources about hiring a paid designated coordinator?
4. Have you managed to find office equipment at little or no cost?
5. Do you have access to email as well as a fax machine and photocopier?
6. Can you answer the ‘who, where, what, how and when’ questions to your program in order to begin
evaluating your program?
Tips to remember
•
Most programs are evaluated as an afterthought. An evaluation will not provide you with anything significant
if it’s considered a mere postscript to your efforts.
•
Help raise community awareness by ensuring there is an element of education in your Safe Communities
program.
This chapter is more difficult to directly link to any of the six individual indicators, however it does provide
useful suggestions for ‘setting-up’ and ensures that you are planning a long-term and sustainable Safe
Communities program. The chapter helps you focus your attention to administrative practicalities and
guarantee that your committee and program have the capacity to continuously meet administrative demands
of the Safe Communities membership indicators and application. Taking the time to carefully establish your
program’s existence from the outset will prove invaluable if you choose to undergo the application and sitevisit assessment processes to join the International Safe Communities Network.
“
Most programs are evaluated as
an afterthought. An evaluation
will not provide you with anything
significant if it’s considered a mere
postscript to your efforts.
20
”
Chapter Three
Link activities and statistics – Collecting your data
Injury
patterns
Local
data
Targeting
injuries
Identify
priorities
Choose
activities
Define
strategies
Developing
tools
Injuries and patterns
In order to clearly identify high priority injury areas, your Safe Communities committee should take a hard
look at injury patterns within your community. A community perceptions and attitude survey is also helpful in
determining community needs as perceived by community members themselves.
While your committee may feel it knows what type of injuries occur most frequently in its community, these
assumptions may not always be accurate. You will also need hard facts if you are going to convince sponsors
to provide funding for your program.
Getting these necessary facts starts by carefully analysing local injury data to obtain statistics that are of use
to your Safe Community committee. Statistics provide information about your community’s injury patterns.
Not only will this data give your committee a clear direction, it provides the baseline data you need to plan
your program activities. This information will also be used to measure the success of your Safe Communities
program.
The cooperation of the local hospital(s), and in particular the emergency department staff, is important to
produce data in a usable form.
Gathering local data
National data is available from government departments. However, this will not be as powerful and meaningful
as local community data. Start with your local hospital or health service, police station, fire department,
Local Government and state coroner. Workers compensation claim data may also provide useful information
relating to workplace injuries. Insurance companies such as car insurance could also provide useful statistics
related to road crashes. Local universities and injury prevention organisations may also be able to access
other data used for research purposes. However, this may or may not be specific enough to the geographical
area as small as your community. Other valuable resources to consider include the local population health unit
and addictions counselling centre. If no other data is available you may consider conducting a small survey to
find out what kinds of injuries have been occurring in your community and what people are most concerned
about in relation to their safety.
21
Targeting injuries
You must collect baseline data for your program in order to target specific injury types and community
segments, such as children, adolescents or seniors. In order to paint a clear picture you should aim to collect
information around the following questions:
•
How many injuries have occurred?
•
What types of injuries were there?
•
What were the major causes of the injuries?
•
Which age groups/sectors experienced injuries in your community?
•
What, if any, injury patterns (frequency, sector, type) can you find?
A community hospital is likely the place where most trauma and injury cases are treated. It can also provide
a key source of information for your program. Most Australian hospitals collect data about deaths called
mortality data and this will show the cause of injury on the patient’s medical records.
Hospital emergency room data and information from walk-in clinics are extremely useful, but may not be
readily available. Involving your local regional hospital staff in your program may close this gap, as they may
be willing to retrieve this type of data for you. Gathering this data could be assigned as a student project
for health promotion, nursing or medical students interested in injury prevention and willing to support your
community project.
Selecting priority injuries and demographics to target
Before selecting your target injuries and demographic groups, revisit the goal of your Safe Communities
program – to make your community the safest place to live, learn, work and play in the world. Look at the data
for injuries occurring at work, at home, at school and during recreational activities.
According to the indicators for joining the International Safe Communities Network, your committee must look
at more than one target injury and age group. Addressing multiple issues allows you to work towards the goal
of effectively introducing, promoting and maintaining a culture of safety in your community.
Be specific about your targets
There are three main criteria you should consider when targeting injuries and demographic groups:
•
Severity of the injury – does it cause death or severe disability?
•
Frequency of the injury – does it affect a large number of people?
•
Availability of effective prevention options.
Remember, the perception of these criteria may differ widely from facts determined by hard data. Take the
time to compare the data for all age groups in your community to the perceived frequency and the severity of
the injuries, and determine the potential for appropriate awareness and prevention activity.
22
Know your limits
Sometimes, it may be difficult to determine effective prevention strategies for the injury/demographic group that
you have identified because the options for reducing the types of injuries are not feasible for your program. In
these cases, become as creative as possible with your potential solutions. Take a realistic approach, without
ignoring the need to motivate your community to carry out your recommendations. Be sure to find out what
other agencies or strategies exist that may be already addressing the issue.
Suggestions for strategies you could try include:
Look for prominent issues
• It’s easier to mobilise community support if attention has already been
drawn to the issue. These can be opportunities to gain support for your
efforts to address these issues. However be careful not to be drawn into
reinforcing media hype and therefore reinforcing the “fear of crime”.
• For example, there may have been local media coverage about multiple
deaths from motor vehicle crashes involving young people.
Find a community
champion to lead your
campaign
• You need to capture people’s interest to make changes happen.
• Consider using your Mayor, President of your Chamber of Commerce
and Industry, a prominent business leader, recognised community
spokesperson or local doctor to champion the cause. See Attachment
One.
Grab people’s attention
• Begin with a project that people can understand and feel compelled
to do something about. This may be addressing an issue that the
community perceives as highly important/threatening to their safety.
Consider the length of
time it takes to put your
program into place
• What initiatives and strategies can be implemented in a short period of
time with limited resources?
Be realistic with your
expectations and goals
• Choose targets that are clearly identifiable and measurable, with specific
expected outcomes.
• Demonstrating successes early on to your community is imperative for
keeping them engaged.
• Longer-term activities that will produce broader results can be planned
for the future.
23
Choosing your activities
Having selected the specific injury types and demographic sectors you plan to target, your next step involves
selecting the strategies to put into action to accomplish the objective of reducing death and injuries in your
community.
Depending on the injuries targeted, a number of factors will contribute to the causes and affect the strategies
selected. Remember to develop activities that will affect as many of these factors as possible. Activities need
to focus on the results you want to achieve. When you are planning these you must continually assess how
the strategies you choose will impact on your goal of making your community a safe place to live, learn, work
and play.
Factors for change
Your committee is about to embark on a program that will eventually create a holistic culture of safety; that
is, before anyone does anything in your community, they will ask themselves, “Am I being safe? Can I protect
myself better or protect the people around me?”
Before you begin outlining your activities, you should understand what is required to bring about changes in
people’s attitude and behaviour (called “social marketing”). To do this, consider the following issues and the
impact they can have on your target market:
•
Awareness – Make your audience aware that a problem exists.
•
Attitude – Identify and offer ways to help them change their attitudes towards resolving the problem.
•
Adopt preferred behaviour – Help your audience identify and adopt safer behaviours and actions.
Research what has been done in other communities to resolve the issue.
•
Anticipate relapse – continually support and promote changes in attitude and behaviour, and take into
consideration that there may be a relapse in positive behaviours.
•
Accept – the fact that you will face challenges and may need to adapt your planning.
To create changes in people’s attitude and behaviour, you must first isolate the message that will help them
change. Then, you must continue to support their efforts, in order to reduce the odds of having them fall back
into old habits.
24
Defining your strategies
There are two types of strategies:
•
Education – increasing and improving information available to the community.
•
Technology – promoting the development of improved technology to eliminate potential factors (i.e.
protective helmets, design of cars, braking systems etc).
Keep in mind that the strategies and the activities required to put them into practice must be carefully chosen
based on effectiveness, cost, resources required and short versus long-term benefits.
The most effective activities will often combine both strategies. An example of an activity that involves both
types of strategies is the child restraint seat. The first strategy involved technology, and the need to invent an
effective restraint mechanism. The second strategy involved the need to educate the public on how to use it
properly.
The Safe Communities committee may use different strategies for each target group. For instance, schools
may focus on educational strategies and engineers will look for technological solutions to deal with problems.
Instead of restricting yourself to one strategy, try to incorporate all of these ideas in your program strategies.
The result will be a more effective combined effort.
Helpful suggestions:
Stay focused on your
objectives
• Tailor your ideas towards the people in your community that you are
targeting.
• Pay special attention to the specific needs of the different cultural groups
in your community.
• Don’t allow people’s tendency to focus on obstacles deter you from
seeking innovative, cost-effective ways to meet your objectives.
Ask the experts
• Invite local experts to contribute ideas and suggestions before jumping
to what may appear to be an obvious solution. These people bring
knowledge, support and resources that you may otherwise not have
access to. Asking for assistance and information can also help you
maximise support in your own community.
Involve your target group
• The most effective plan always involves the people most affected. That’s
why it’s important to bring together representatives from each target
group and involve them in the planning. You will need their “buy-in” to
make things happen. For example, when designing activities aimed at
teenagers, make sure you involve teenagers on your committee.
25
Developing guidelines, materials and education strategies
Now you are ready to begin specific tasks and gather together the materials you plan to distribute to your
community.
The table below distinguishes between different types of strategies.
Guidelines
Materials
Educational strategies
The purpose of developing written
guidelines are to:
• Outline “who is going to do
what, for whom and how”.
This becomes the road
map that Safe Communities
committee members follow.
• Publicly show the
commitment from each
agency for the job each will
do for the Safe Community.
• Enable the designated
coordinator to follow up
and ensure that committee
members meet their
commitments.
• Increase public awareness
about your Safe Communities
program, while helping to
maintain volunteer interest.
Groups and individuals members
may be asked to carry out
specific tasks; however it is
important to make sure that they
match expertise and ability.
For example, it may be important
to turn to a professional
communications person or an
advertising agency for guidance
and help with writing advertising
material, developing graphics for
a poster, filming a public service
announcement or taping a radio
spot.
Education strategies provide your
reader and target audience with
the information that will allow
them to make informed decisions.
Educational materials outline:
• Why the information is
needed.
• Who the information is for.
• What the information is about.
Creating your own educational materials or using existing information will help in supporting your planned
activities and give your program a coordinated approach.
The most effective educational efforts combine personal interaction with printed educational materials and
a media campaign. The more ways and places a person sees and hears your injury prevention and safety
promotion message, the more likely it will produce an effect. Using education as a technique requires printed
materials such as posters, brochures, flyers, curriculum and guides as tools. Wherever possible, use the
same message, logo and colour scheme to identify your Safe Communities program and to enhance your
message.
There will be many useful contacts and businesses in your community that can help you in developing these
documents. It is worthwhile spending time to research what help you can access from your community to help
spread your safety messages effectively.
26
Local advertising agencies, graphic artists or copywriters may be willing to donate some or all of their services
and hard material costs if they become convinced of the benefits of supporting your Safe Communities
program. Offer to give these groups public recognition in return for their services. Allow them to place their
name and/or logo on the materials they help create. Paper and printing usually must be paid for, which is one
of the main reasons you will need funds for your program. Remember you will never know what you can get
for free (or at a reduced cost) if you don’t ask!
Partnering businesses or organisations that distribute educational and promotional materials may be able to
photocopy a supply of flyers and information sheets. For example, a school may be able to photocopy flyers
for your booth at the school safety fair or a hospital can copy flyers to hand out in the emergency room or
paediatric clinic.
Many government and corporate agencies that support not-for-profit injury prevention and safety promotion
programs offer quality educational materials free of charge. Be sure to keep your eyes open and ask your Safe
Communities committee members and participating agencies if they know of such free materials. Often you
can supplement your message with content from existing programs.
Additional methods to spread your messages should also be considered. Some different techniques and
ideas are explained in the following table:
Public relations and
the media
Include public relations (PR) and media activities in your guidelines to
attract focus to your need to raise public awareness about your Safe
Communities program and to maintain interest levels.
A successful PR campaign can raise awareness about your goal. When
coupled with traditional forms of advertising (ads in newspapers, flyers,
etc.), PR provides a credible means of promotion. People tend to view
issues described in newspapers or discussed on TV or radio programs as
more credible than paid ads. We suggest using both public relations and
advertising for the best results.
Public speaking
Public speaking engagements can be a very effective educational tool
when used in combination with printed materials and media messages.
However, reaching many people with a personal message can be very
labour-intensive. Assembly programs in schools, presentations at meetings
and counselling by health care providers can help you relay a personal
message. Ask members of your Safe Communities committee to search
out opportunities to speak publicly in their professional field. Members of
your committee should share public appearances and staffing at school
fairs and shopping mall or hospital health fairs. Develop an information flyer
/ PowerPoint presentation to have ready should an opportunity arise to
present.
27
New or improved safety
products
Developing and producing a new safety product may be beyond the
capabilities of your Safe Communities committee. However, your Safe
Communities program can be extremely effective in getting a new or
improved safety product distributed and used.
Take life jackets or personal flotation devices for example. You can educate
your community about the comfort of life jackets, and at the same, time
explain the importance of using them to save lives.
You can also explain that creating a demand for life jackets and other
safety products often results in lowering the cost of these products,
something that is an added benefit to the public.
Benefits versus costs
Comparing the benefits of using injury prevention devices to the actual
cost of the item can act as a strong call to action.
For example, you can purchase a good quality bicycle helmet for less than
$50. The lifetime cost for a head injured child (including intensive care,
long-term hospital costs, lifetime care and support at home) is hundreds of
thousands of dollars higher.
Coupons/vouchers
Incorporating a coupon/voucher discount plan into your prevention
program can increase your program’s success. It seems to be part of
human nature to love a bargain! Work with a company, manufacturer or
local distributors on the discount, offering to advertise its availability.
Raising funds
Your committee may also want to raise funds to buy prevention items
such as bike helmets or smoke alarms to distribute to low-income groups.
Raised funds could also be used to launch a scald/burn program to supply
families with hot water temperature gauges.
Safe Communities
branding
Encourage existing safety initiatives in your community to display the Safe
Communities “brand” i.e. logo, icon, motto etc.
Chapter review
Injury patterns and data collection:
•
Have you used hard, statistical data outlining local injury patterns?
•
Did you establish baseline data to measure the success of your Safe Communities program?
•
Have you considered conducting a community attitude survey?
Tips to remember
•
Avoid getting ‘stuck’ in a mire of statistics. While it’s easy to keep gathering more data, people can lose
interest and motivation if all they are doing is analysing statistics. Remember, your goal is to move forward
with activities that stimulate and maintain interest in building a safe community.
•
Community information meetings are a great way to promote your program.
28
Selecting target injuries and demographics:
•
Did you select multiple target injuries and demographics to reflect injury patterns at work and at play?
•
Is there a specific focus (measurable outcome, timeline) for your activities?
•
Does community support exist for the target injuries chosen?
•
Have you selected a community champion to provide additional leadership for your Safe Communities
program?
•
Have you collected baseline data to measure the outcome of your programs?
Tips to remember
•
Identify the most “at risk” sector of the population for a specific injury type.
For example, in 2008, a total of 1,464 Australians died as a result of motor vehicle crashes. Twenty-six
percent of these deaths occurred among youths aged 17 – 25 years. In communities where motor vehicle
crashes have been identified as a concern, this data indicates a need to focus on prevention strategies
aimed at this particular age group8.
Choosing your activities:
•
Will your activities include both educational and technological strategies?
•
Have you considered activities for both short and long-term benefits?
•
Did you invite input from local community experts?
•
Did you involve representatives of your target population groups?
•
Have you celebrated your successes?
Tips to remember
•
Look for ways your project will succeed rather than ways it could fail. Be sure to build in celebrations to
mark the small steps along the way.
8. Australian Government, Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government. 2009. Road Safety Report No. 4. Road Deaths Australia
2008 Statistical Summary. Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.
29
Developing guidelines and gathering materials:
•
Does your Safe Communities committee have written guidelines?
•
Did you include media activities to raise and maintain public awareness?
•
Have you gathered samples of education materials or created your own to use in your program?
•
Do you have an effective public speaker on your committee?
•
Do you have any speaking events scheduled?
•
Have you researched new or improved safety products suited to your activities?
Tips to remember
•
Be sure to match the right people with the right skill sets to the right jobs!
•
Attractive safety display booths in a trade fair gain public attention for your program.
Indicator two Long-term, sustainable programs covering all genders and all ages, environments, and situations.
Indicator three Programs that target high-risk groups and environments, and programs that promote safety
Indicator four Programs that document the frequency and causes of injuries.
Working through chapter three allows your committee to ensure the activities you implement to address the
safety concerns are matched to the needs of your community. Gathering the right kind of data through reliable
methods also allows you to have confidence in how you will measure the effectiveness and impacts of your
program initiatives.
“
”
Be sure to match the right people with
the right skill sets to the right jobs!
30
Chapter Four
Implement your program – Developing your business plan
The value of goal setting
Health and safety promotion in any community is a long-term process. Not everything can be achieved in
the first year. It is important to remain realistic and set a variety of goals for the short, medium and long-term
because they achieve several functions.
Short-term goals help keep people involved, motivated and on target.
Medium-term goals allow for evaluation and changes as your program progresses.
Long-term goals recognise that major changes in behaviour take time, as well as a commitment of resources
in a broad strategy.
Always start with activities that are the easiest and the most likely to succeed. You can move to the
more challenging activities once you have some successes under your belt. Remember to celebrate your
achievements. You can use these events as inspiration to continue your work and remain focussed.
Business plan elements
The ASCF strongly believes that practical, realistic programs can result in reduced injuries and improved
safety.
A well thought-out business plan will identify goals, objectives, strategies and activities that will become the
“road map” for your Safe Communities program.
Writing a business plan will allow you to develop the long-term vision and good management that will carry
your program beyond the initial few months. This document should identify your program goal and include
specific strategies and activities that relate to your objectives. Your plan should include timelines relative to
each phase of the plan – remembering that you will have a variety of short, medium and long-term goals.
A financial plan showing budget figures for revenues and expenses will also need to be developed. This plan
should include projections for management costs, travel, rent, supplies, program materials and services.
31
The table below explains the different elements to include in your business plan and also provides helpful
suggestions for your strategic planning.
Goal
When developing your goal, base it on the overall change you want to
make in your community. Many Safe Communities choose the generic
goal: “to make their community the safest place to live, learn, work and
play”. While other Safe Communities have chosen this same goal, the
objectives you choose should be specific to your community.
Values
These should indicate the spirit in which you want to operate your program
and behaviours and ideals for all members to exhibit. Some examples are:
• Inclusiveness.
• Valuing and respecting difference and diversity.
• Right to question and give constructive criticism.
• Complete mutually determined roles and responsibilities in a timely and
professional manner.
• Work in a best practice and business excellence framework towards a
safe community.
• Acknowledgement of contribution and achievements towards a safer
community.
• Confidentiality.
• Sharing.
Objectives
Common characteristics of successful objectives are:
• Specific – Identify the length of time it will take to complete the
objective and include short-term (1 year) and long-term (3-5 years)
timelines.
• Measurable – Your objectives must include fact-based data so you can
measure and identify a change in knowledge, behaviour and number
of injuries.
• Realistic – You may want to “change the world” but ensure that your
objectives are something that you can reasonably expect to achieve.
Setting an objective that aims to “reduce bike injuries” will be difficult
to measure. If your objective is “to reduce head injuries by 30% among
children aged 5-12 years cycling over the next 3 years by increasing
the use of bike helmets” you can easily determine if you have achieved
success at the end of that time period.
32
Strategies
Strategies are the path that will lead you to your goal. Strategies must be
clear, concise and applicable to a specific project.
Using the example of reducing head injuries amongst cyclists, the
following strategies may be defined:
• Ensure availability of helmets at a reasonable cost, possibly through a
corporate sponsor program.
• Initiate an educational program at the school to encourage peer
pressure to wear helmets.
• Encourage parents to set a good example by wearing helmets.
• Develop public awareness programs in the community.
• Correlate any changes in injury statistics from the local hospital.
• Plan to announce your results to the media.
Activities
The activities you develop should match your strategies, with specific
tasks assigned to specific people. Establish time lines and check points to
ensure your program stays on track.
Using the example of reducing head injuries amongst cyclists, your
activities may include:
• Designing and printing a pamphlet aimed at 5 to 12 year olds by a
specific date.
• Distributing the pamphlet through local schools and in various
community locations (schools, stores, etc) within a specific timeframe.
• Establishing a partnership with a bike safety organisation or bicycle
users group by the end of the calendar year.
In all your activities, be creative. Use brainstorming to develop new and
innovative ways of getting your message across to the community. Keep
good records of your activities, give feedback to your volunteers and
celebrate your successes!
“
Use brainstorming to develop new and
innovative ways of getting your message
across to the community. Keep good records
of your activities, give feedback to your
volunteers and celebrate your successes!
”
33
Application processes to join the International Safe Communities Network
As part of the application process to join the International Safe Communities Network, you must develop a
clear business plan, which will be reviewed by the ASCF. Your business plan will help the ASCF learn about
your Safe Communities committee, your community and determine if the required elements are in place to
carry out the activities required to reach your goal.
Your Safe Communities business plan
The following list of information can be used as a checklist of items to include in your Safe Communities
business plan.
Your Safe Communities program background (include name of project, address and contact information):
•
Mission statement.
•
Values.
•
Goals and objectives.
•
Terms of reference.
•
Specific program plans including: measurable data collection methods, time lines and methods of
evaluation.
•
Community profile (geographic, demographics).
•
Committee structure.
•
Executive designates with names, addresses and affiliations.
•
Committee members with names, addresses and affiliations.
•
Banking arrangements.
•
Funding plan (short-, mid- and long-term).
•
Budget (minimum 2 years).
•
Letters of support.
•
Position descriptions for coordinator and executive.
Your plan should show that your committee has long-term vision and good program management. In order
to fully explain your plan, make sure you include some proposed programs and a financial plan for your
sustainability.
Keep in mind that plans can be changed and tailored after your program gets up and running. In fact, this is
an ideal time to do so as your methods will be based in reality and your program will be in a better position to
respond to any obstacles.
34
With even the best laid plans, you may feel that you are not getting as much accomplished as you had
originally hoped for. Be patient. It may take a while for activities to get going and for the effects of your program
to flow. As the “word” spreads about your program, more people are likely to become interested.
Even if you are a small community with a modest program and a small committee, don’t despair. As long as
your committee involves people representing the structure of your entire community, anything you do is an
improvement over what has been done before. This effort may be enough to prevent an injury or save a life.
Interim reporting
As you implement your program, be sure to carry out evaluation on a regular basis. Monitor your progress by
making frequent interim reports to your members. Some questions to ask your committee may relate to:
•
Are our activities being effective in moving us towards our goal? (e.g. are more children wearing bike
helmets?)
•
Have we involved the media in promoting our events?
•
Do we have the support of a diverse group of organisations and businesses in our community?
Chapter review
The following questions should be asked to guide you in writing your business plan:
•
Does your committee include representation from various parts of your community, such as the Local
Government, emergency services, health care, Department of Education, large and small businesses and
community groups?
•
Do you have an elected executive, terms of reference and a bank account?
•
What experience and qualifications do members on your committee have and what injury prevention and
safety promotion activities have they been involved with in the past?
•
Have you been creative in planning your programs and activities – will they be successful in reducing and
eliminating injuries, and promoting safety in your community?
•
What statistics did you use to establish a need?
•
What are your goals and objectives?
•
Do you have the support of your Mayor, Chamber of Commerce and Industry, community leaders,
emergency service providers and other groups in your community?
•
How will you measure success?
•
How will you analyse and use the data?
•
Does your plan outline the goals of your Safe Communities program?
•
Do your objectives reflect your goal?
•
Are your objectives measurable?
•
Have you developed time lines to track your progress?
•
Did you highlight community and business partnerships?
35
•
Have you developed some creative ideas and strategies?
•
Did you include long-term plans?
•
Have you included methods to measure your success?
•
Have you shown financial support and sustainability in your program?
•
Does your business plan include the listed components provided on the business plan checklist?
Tips to remember
•
The initial enthusiasm of Safe Communities committee members may be lost if activities are delayed by
too much planning.
•
Developing time lines will give your team a sense of greater control and assurance that activities are taking
place.
•
Keep written records of community events as well as photos, newspaper clippings and videos.
When submitting an application to join the International Safe Communities Network your community is required
to prepare specific documentation to demonstrate your community’s achievement in meeting each of the six
indicators. Compiling your thorough business plan will benefit your committee in their application preparation
and documentation processes.
“
The initial enthusiasm of Safe
Communities committee members
may be lost if activities are delayed
by too much planning. Developing
time lines will give your team a sense
of greater control and assurance that
activities are taking place.
36
”
Chapter Five
Helpful partnerships – Organisations, individuals and volunteers
The bigger picture
Your local Safe Communities program is part of many larger networks at state, national and international
levels. The ASCF is a national organisation with the mission to build and support strong national alliances
and partnerships through sharing knowledge, skills, data, and providing products and services to help make
Australia the safest place in the world to live, learn, work and play.
The ASCF is making a significant contribution, both in Australia and overseas, in its capacity as a Certifying
Centre of the WHO Collaborating Centre on Community Safety Promotion.
The Foundation can assist bringing community leaders, small business owners, large corporations and local
agencies together to create effective health and safety programs that meet local needs.
No one sector, government, private or not-for-profit, can tackle the challenges of injury prevention alone.
Partnerships between your Safe Communities program and other groups are critical.
Benefits from forming partnerships
•
Each organisation or individual brings his or her own resources, experience and skill sets to the
partnership.
•
The workload is distributed over a wider base.
•
The Safe Communities message has the potential to reach a larger audience.
•
All the partners can link in to activities and programs led by the others.
37
Potential partners
Working with organisations in your community provides an effective method of finding new people interested
in working on your program. A large part of your job will involve “selling” the idea of the Safe Communities
program and seeking out like-minded and committed people who will help you put your program into place.
These may include:
•
State workers compensation and insurance organisations.
•
Health care providers.
•
Businesses.
•
Department of Education.
•
Chambers of Commerce and Industry/business council.
•
Community service teams.
•
Non-government community agencies, e.g. Lifeline, Domestic Violence Service, Salvation Army and local
community/neighbourhood centres.
•
Tourism and hospitality organisations.
•
Financial institutions.
•
Providers of emergency services (Police, Fire, Ambulance).
•
Relevant Federal, State and Local Government agencies.
•
Potential partners as indicated by your community’s demographics.
•
Elected officials.
•
Local media.
Be sure to share your terms of reference and business plan with all partners to ensure they are all aware of
your aims and expectations. Use your state and national support centres to help you identify contacts for
a specific program and contact other Safe Communities and talk to them about their projects or visit their
communities if you can. Information sharing is an important aspect of the Safe Communities movement.
Volunteer engagement and training
Volunteers play an important role in any Safe Communities program. As such, they should be provided with
the same types of training and development that would be given to a full time, paid staff position.
Developing practices and procedures in areas such as: selection, orientation, training, coaching, reviewing
and feedback and rewards or recognition will help you work effectively with your volunteers.
As part of the Safe Communities team, your volunteers will have many transferable skills that they will bring
from their professions and take back to their jobs. Your job is to capitalise on those abilities, and put those
skills to work for your program. It is tempting to ask the same people to do everything, just because they are
willing. Match the volunteers to his/her interests, time availability, talents and the project you have for him/her
to do.
38
39
• Create an action plan • As you build your
Safe Communities
that describes how
committee, strive
you and your team
to create an
members intend
atmosphere of team
to learn and grow
spirit.
professionally in a
given time period.
• Encourage others
to take pride in
• Form part of the
individual and group
overall committee
accomplishments.
plan to achieve your
goals and targets.
• Use the resources
around you to
maximise your effort.
• Consider both
private and nonprofit training
organisations.
• Ask for one or two
hours a month
to assist you in
designing a series
of sessions that
address your teams
needs. For example:
presentations, team
building or volunteer
recruitment.
• Mentoring is more
than networking.
Mentors:
• Are someone to
share your goals
with.
• Provide
encouragement and
guidance.
• Can offer
suggestions and
advice.
• Will connect you with
others who can help
and guide you.
• Good examples:
Accountants,
lawyers, business
owners, or other
Safe Communities
committees that
have accomplished
what you are trying
to do.
• You may consider a
group of mentors to
assist your program.
• Create a formal
recognition and
appreciation
process.
• Recognise and
appreciate staff on a
regular basis.
• Involve the media.
• Reward goal
and benchmark
achievements (i.e.
a committee
lunch, appreciation
certificates, public
presentations,
colourful thank-you
signs on an office
wall).
• Articulate roles and
responsibilities.
• Make sure tasks are
clearly explained.
• Detail the reporting
system and
deadlines.
• Explain your goals
and the scope of the
program.
• Address the need for
injury prevention.
• Show how your
program fits into the
state, national and
worldwide picture.
• Stress the role of
your volunteers as
ambassadors.
• Encourage
feedback, both
informal and formal.
• Provide an
orientation package.
• Always be specific
in your request for
volunteers.
• Choose your
volunteers based
on skills as well as
availability.
• Be task and activity
specific-not all tasks
need the same skill
set.
• Have groups of
volunteers to call
upon so the same
people don’t have to
do everything.
• Encourage each
volunteer to recruit
one other person.
• Create opportunities
for your volunteers to
have fun.
Team skills
Professional
development
Mentoring for staff
Recognition
Orientation
Recruiting
The table below outlines different factors to consider when planning your volunteer practices, processes and procedures:
Funding sources
Be aware of the different opportunities and funding sources within your own community. It is worthwhile
investigating potential opportunities in your community such as:
•
Community service organisations often have money available for community projects but may be mandated
to support certain types of activity. For example children, seniors, recreation, etc.
•
Larger businesses and corporates often choose to support worthwhile community projects they feel will
provide them with good public relations. For example mining and finance sectors.
•
Other community groups, not-for-profit organisations and/or Local government authorities may partner
with you on some of your activities and agree to share such costs, including advertising and promotion.
•
Consider one major fundraiser a year.
•
Many Local, State and Federal Government agencies sponsor specific community programs related to
health, safety and crime prevention and may provide some funding support through grants programs.
•
Local government authorities may also provide some funding for local safety initiatives.
“
Be aware of the different
opportunities and funding sources
within your own community. It is
worthwhile investigating potential
opportunities in your community.
40
”
Chapter review
Before leaving this section double check your progress with these questions about partnerships, volunteers
and training:
•
Have you developed a plan to find like-minded people willing to support your efforts?
•
Does everyone on your committee have a clear vision of the goals of your Safe Communities program?
•
Have you contacted or researched other Safe Communities for ideas?
•
Have you oriented members to your business plan?
•
Has everyone agreed to your established goals and project?
•
Have you provided the necessary information and materials to get the job done?
•
Have you solved problems as a team?
•
Do you use brainstorming to find the best solution?
•
Do you encourage constructive feedback from others, and provide with the same?
•
Do you recognise the efforts of everyone involved?
•
Do you celebrate your successes – no matter how small?
Tips to remember
•
Build on good ideas. Talking to other Safe Communities can provide you with a wealth of information and
some great ideas for your program.
•
Your designated coordinator needs to maintain good communication with all partners and remember to
provide feedback from small group projects to the whole committee.
•
People always like to have their efforts recognised. Expressing thanks helps to maintain enthusiasm.
•
Some activities and tasks can be accomplished more easily by one person than a team.
•
One of the most effective ways to deal with the stress of responsibility, organising staff and still accomplish
your goals, is to have a mentor or coach to lean on.
41
Indicator one An infrastructure based on partnership and collaborations, governed by a cross-sectional
Indicator six Ongoing participation in national and international Safe Communities networks.
This chapter has outlined different methods and issues to consider when developing partnerships, both with
other organisations in your community and with your volunteers. The skills to establish these partnerships will
be beneficial to developing sub-committees and across the whole program as working in partnerships and
collaboration is a core concept of the Safe Communities philosophy.
Making contact with other Safe Communities and seeking advice from other Safe Communities supporting
organisations also opens your pathways into wider networks across state, national and eventually international
networks.
“
Making contact with other Safe
Communities and seeking advice
from other Safe Communities
supporting organisations also opens
your pathways into wider networks
across state, national and eventually
international networks.
42
”
Chapter Six
Communication strategy – The role of the media
The role of media coverage in your program
The biggest benefit of media coverage is that it raises awareness for your Safe Communities program. The
media can help you get your message out to a large number of people at one time, and raise public awareness
about safety issues. When practiced right from the start of your program, it can also:
•
Raise community awareness about the need to take positive action to decrease and eliminate injuries.
•
Generate interest in your program from potential business partners who will also benefit from media
attention featuring their community support.
•
Build credibility about your Safe Communities program and associated activities.
•
Draw attention to fundraising efforts supporting your program.
•
Promote the launch of your program or other special events.
To generate media coverage, consider both media relations and advertising.
Combining media relations and advertising
Where possible, it is recommended to use both media relations and advertising. This is because in reality it
is difficult to control what information the media will use through media kits, news releases and other similar
media relations tools. For instance, on a busy news day your information may be pushed aside as news
editors make room for late-breaking or more pressing stories, but on other days your program may receive
front-page coverage.
In contrast, advertising gives you complete control over what is being said, as well as where and how it is
being said. This is because you pay for the placement of your advertisement and therefore, have more control
over how your message is being communicated.
One way to reduce the costs of advertising is to use available materials. Check State and National Government
departments, such as health, transportation and community safety portfolios. These groups often have free
printed advertisements or promotional materials in various sizes addressing many different topics. Some of
these materials also contain a blank area where you can insert your local message. Contact your local public
health unit for more information.
Mixing both media relations and advertising gives you the advantage of getting your message across the way
you want it communicated, with the added credibility of media coverage.
43
Tips for engaging with media
When using the media as a tool for promoting and raising awareness for your program, be sure to always
keep your messages simple. Use other, more controllable methods to focus on changing attitudes and
behaviours.
Ask an expert
Use local experts involved in your Safe Communities program to help you build your media campaign. A
public relations or advertising professional can often provide invaluable advice and assistance.
Give them “news”
Informing and educating the public is the role of the news media. It is your job to ensure that the heart of your
message is communicated. Sometimes this is challenging because the media may simplify or omit sections
of information. To help get your message across, give the media new information instead of the whole picture.
Look at your Safe Communities program and focus on specific topics and issues that are newsworthy.
For example, it’s more effective to tell the news media that your community is “taking action to eliminate
pedestrian injuries and deaths in children under the age of 10 years”, than to state that your community
“wants to become the safest place in the world to live, learn, work and play.” Go on to provide statistical
information about the related injuries, outline how you plan to eliminate the injuries and deaths and provide
information about your Safe Communities program.
The table below provides information about different methods of media and advertising that you should
consider using when developing your strategies:
News releases
44
News releases and media kits are the traditional tools used to provide all
news media (newspapers, radio, and television stations) and news wire
services, with specific pieces of information.
When you have some newsworthy information you want to convey to the
media, such as launching your Safe Communities program or holding a
special event, write a one or two page news release.
News releases should include:
• Title – be creative and try to get the media’s attention.
• Date of the news release.
• Name of your community.
• Name(s) and telephone number(s) for the media to contact for further
information.
• The “who, what, where, when, why and how” of the message/event
you want to publicise. Summarise this in the first paragraph.
• Quote(s) supporting your announcement or event from your Mayor,
Chamber of Commerce and Industry or Business Council, community
champion or other members of your Safe Communities committee.
Media kits
Media kits are packages of materials that provide additional background
information about your event/program to the media. Your media kit,
contained in a plain folder, should include the following components:
• A news release.
• A fact sheet, in point form, listing some of the relevant statistics about
injuries in your community, including information about age groups and
high-risk activities. Your fact sheet may also include information about
your Safe Communities committee, program and the ASCF.
• An interesting photo (optional).
• Information about which public officials or other community leaders
will be participating in your program, and the availability of photo
opportunities.
• Any related handout materials such as brochures and booklets, or a
handout that supports what is stated in your news release.
It is recommended that you call each reporter a few days after you
send out the media kit to make sure they received it. This also allows
opportunities to answer any questions the reporter may have. Remember
to promote the event and the importance of your Safe Communities
program. Invite and encourage the reporter to attend, and try to get a
commitment from them to include the event in their paper or broadcast.
Community media
Keep an eye out for opportunities to promote your Safe Communities
program events or issues within your community. Posters or brochures
placed in schools, government offices, local businesses, laundromats,
cafes, supermarkets, community centres and other workplaces can all
help to get your information to the public.
Newspapers
Many local newspapers have a listing section for community events. Use
this area to promote events, committee meetings and recruitment drives
for volunteers.
Television stations (TV)
Most TV stations run “free” public service announcements. However,
consider the costs of production before using this medium. If the
resources are available to you, take advantage of them. Try to
use professional creative services so your message remains clear
and entertaining to the public. Remember, as with public service
announcements on the radio, you have no way of knowing when your
message will air, or if your target audience will see it.
Community events
Keep your eyes and ears open for community group fairs, events or
workshops that appeal to your target audience. Contact the organisers
and ask if you could set up an information booth, distribute your flyers or
display your posters. Some local community groups publish a calendar of
events in the community.
45
Advertising
One of the most important things about advertising is frequency. Consider
your target audience when deciding where to place your ads. For a clear
picture of the advertising potential of various media, ask the station or print
advertising staff for an ‘Advertising Rates Card’. In addition to providing
costs and production specifications for advertisements, rate cards provide
specific information about the age groups, gender, number of readers or
listeners and geographic location of the target audience.
Print advertising
This medium covers a broad range of paid printed materials, including:
• Newspaper ads.
• Magazine ads.
• Bus shelter posters.
• Billboard posters.
The cost of placing print advertising varies depending on the size of the
audience and the geographic location. Also consider the production costs
involved, including the design of the ad, photography, and printing.
Radio advertising
While more expensive than print advertising, advertising on the radio
allows you to better target your message to a specific group of people,
such as teenagers or adults, based on the music or content format of the
station. If you decide to use radio advertising, ask the station for support
in producing your message. The station may produce your commercial
free or for a minimal charge, using their professional announcers, sound
effects, writers and stock music resources.
Television advertising
While it is the most persuasive medium for getting your message across,
advertising on TV remains the most expensive format. If you have the
resources to use this medium, utilise the services of a professional
advertising agency or TV production company to help you maximise your
effectiveness.
46
Chapter review
Use the following review questions to summarise the important components of media relations:
•
Have you kept your media contacts up to date with events, activities and successes of your Safe
Communities program?
•
Have you included the “who, what, when, why and where” in all news releases?
•
Have you developed a media kit for distribution?
•
Have you established a specific contact person at each media outlet?
•
Are there free advertising or community listing sites in your community? Are you using them?
•
What other Safe Communities supporting networks at a national and state level can you ask for
assistance?
Tips to remember
•
The benefit of media relation activities is that you don’t have to pay to deliver your message, although they
may involve some marginal costs such as photocopying and postage.
•
Begin your news release with the most important pieces of information so that if the last few paragraphs
are removed, it will still contain the most vital facts, and will still make sense.
•
When you pay for media exposure, you get complete control over what is being said or printed.
•
Ask for donations of supplies and services. Find out if companies would be willing to donate related
supplies or services in exchange for public thanks.
•
Don’t forget to advertise in your own workplace. It’s a great way to get people talking with you about your
Safe Communities program.
Indicator two Long-term, sustainable programs covering all genders and all ages, environments, and situations.
Indicator three Programs that target high-risk groups and environments, and programs that promote safety
Media relations and advertising are two essential strategies to incorporate into your safety promotion
programs. They are effective methods not only to earn support from partnering and sponsoring organisations,
but also to engage and communicate key messages to your target audiences. Without media attention
and advertising strategies, the ability to promote safety messages, educate people around injury risks and
challenge community attitudes around perceptions of safety and behaviour choices would fail. Furthermore,
programs would be ineffective at achieving their objectives.
47
Chapter Seven
Keep the ball rolling – Monitoring and sustaining your program
Continuous monitoring of your Safe Communities program helps identify new opportunities and areas that
need extra attention or change. Keeping on top of program activities ensures that any new issues that
arise can be addressed promptly and effectively. While your designated coordinator may take most of the
responsibility for these efforts, remember to ask for additional support from other committee members or an
outside organisation if needed.
Continue communication
Your designated coordinator should remain in touch with each Safe Communities committee member and
any others who are performing activities. This person should give encouragement, listen to problems and offer
suggestions for solutions. He or she should also take responsibility for ensuring that the appropriate resources
are available to support each activity.
In committees that don’t have a designated coordinator, the chair should be responsible for assigning
appropriate committee members to coordinate each activity. These people can keep the Safe Communities
committee up to date during regularly scheduled meetings.
Safe Communities committee meetings provide opportunities for communication and a way to involve your
entire group in success stories and discussions around more challenging areas. Once your program is under
way, the whole membership should be involved in making most decisions. However, individual communication
from the designated coordinator to a committee member may be necessary to share technical expertise or to
deal quickly with a decision involving only that member.
Know how and where to seek help
At any stage that you or members of your Safe Communities committee feel overwhelmed or unable to
provide the right expertise, do not hesitate to seek help from outside your group. People and professional
resources around your community who may not have been able to make a long-term commitment to your
Safe Communities program, may be willing to help out with a particular activity, if needed and asked.
Remember, you are putting into place a long-term and sustainable program aimed at changing long-term
attitudes and behaviours about safety.
48
If your Safe Communities program has applied for and received membership to the International Safe
Communities Network, you have clear reporting responsibilities. You are required to monitor your projects
and gather data on your results. Even if your Safe Communities program is not a member of the International
Safe Communities Network, or in the process of applying for membership, collecting surveillance data and
monitoring your projects are still extremely important.
Ensure that planned activities are completed by distributing a reporting form to each Safe Communities
committee member. This form is probably most valuable for evaluation but can also be used to monitor
completion of an activity. Your designated coordinator should speak regularly with Safe Communities committee
members carrying out activities in order to ensure they know what is happening at any given moment.
Program reporting
As a member of the International Safe Communities Network, your committee must file an annual report
with the WHO CCCSP (via the ASCF if they undertook the site visit assessment). Here you will need to revisit
your original objectives and evaluate the likelihood of achieving them, in both the short and the longer-term.
In some instances it may appear that, because of unforeseen circumstances, your original objectives need
to be revisited. Do not be disheartened by this, rather consider this an opportunity to refocus so that your
committee is on track to meet its revised objectives over the next twelve months.
Flexibility in your program
Any ideal program as mapped out on paper must be flexible to change, in response to realities that emerge
when it is being implemented. Your designated coordinator and Safe Communities committee must remain
sensitive to the need for change and must be prepared to develop methods that are suited to the actual
situation.
Planning evaluation
All programs require continual monitoring as they function on a day-to-day, month-to-month and year-toyear basis. This ongoing monitoring requires baselines that let you know if you are on track, on time and on
budget.
The ASCF considers the evaluation of your Safe Communities program to be one of the most vital steps in the
injury prevention process. We believe that evaluation provides the only accurate way to determine if your Safe
Communities program has made a difference. After all, when you measure the effectiveness of your program,
you can see if your activities really worked.
If you completed the checklist within the “Consider Evaluation Early” section of this guidebook in chapter
two, you already have the ways and means of completing your evaluation. This evaluation needs to relate
the amount of service and activity received by the target population to the rate of change in knowledge or
behaviour, as documented by your statistics.
49
Why you need to evaluate your program
Tracking planned activities as they take place is very important. If the activities are not performed adequately,
your program will not meet its objectives, and your goals will not be reached. This level of evaluation answers
the following questions:
•
Who is being reached by your program, and to what extent?
•
Are the activities occurring as planned?
Make certain that all activities developed to accomplish your objectives are quantifiable and counted. For
instance, the number of helmet discount coupons/vouchers distributed, the number of school assembly
programs completed, the number of posters distributed, and pre/post testing and monitoring the before and
after changes in knowledge and behaviour of participants.
A reporting form may be helpful to accomplish this. Ongoing process evaluations can also highlight gaps and
weaker components in your program activities, allowing you to revise your program as necessary.
Assigning numbers provides your designated coordinator with ongoing results of program activities. This is
especially important for measuring successes to support your short-term objectives or to provide hard ‘facts’
to help explain any unexpected outcomes that are not as they should be.
Remember, if your Safe Communities program doesn’t meet the objectives you set out at the beginning, chalk
it up to experience, learn from it and make changes to get things working. Creating a safety culture takes
time.
Plan to evaluate
Different levels of evaluation serve different purposes, although they will often overlap. Planning your evaluations
at the beginning of your program to ensure that regular evaluation takes place provides a useful tool for the
success of your program.
You, your community and the ASCF will want to know the effect of your program. After all, you are accountable
to funding sources, your community, and evaluation is essential for good program management. However,
you must understand the level at which you are evaluating your program and what your evaluation is capable
of showing. If you are unable to measure or show that you are doing what you said you would do, you will lose
direction and not sustain your successes. This is why it is essential to collect any baseline data before you
begin implementing any program.
50
Process evaluation and results evaluation
There are two areas to look at in your program evaluation:
1. The process.
2. The results.
It is particularly important to make certain that what you are doing is effective. Particularly since new methods
and programs are continuously being developed in the field of injury prevention and resources are also
scarce.
Process evaluation: Were your activities completed successfully?
Look at the success of your activities. Listen to comments from your target audience, your Safe Communities
committee and your community in general. Take a look at your feedback forms. What did they have to say
about your activities? What information can you gather from these? Some other questions, which are useful
to consider answering, are:
•
Were your pamphlets and other handout materials well received?
•
Did your committee communicate effectively?
•
Were your activities executed effectively?
•
Did you give as many public speeches as you had identified in your action plan? If so, how many people
heard your message? Did they understand your message correctly? If not, why not?
•
Were your pamphlets distributed where you had planned? How quickly were they picked up? Did you
estimate your quantity correctly?
If possible, incorporate response mechanisms into any printed materials so you can measure who received
the material. You may consider holding a draw so that people will fill out the response mechanism.
“
Look at the success of your activities.
Listen to comments from your target
audience, your Safe Communities
committee and your community in general.
”
51
Results evaluation: Did it work?
Measure the final outcome against the goals of your program – to reduce injuries and death. By using your
baseline data you can track data for changes. Given that the numbers may be so small for each injury problem
it is likely that any change during a one year period may seem insignificant. Concentrate more on trends and
looking for a gradual decline over a prolonged period (i.e. five or more years). Be aware of other activities in
your community that may have influenced the decrease in death and injury and be sure to report your results
and the factors that influenced your results as accurately as possible.
Results evaluation also measures the more specific objectives you have been aiming for, the ones that will
accomplish the reduction in injuries and death.
For example, remember the two part helmet objective?
Short-term: To increase the awareness of the need for safety helmets among 30% of all local children aged
5-12 years and their parents in the first year of operation.
Long-term: To reduce the number of injuries and deaths due to head injuries by 15 per cent by increasing the
wearing of helmets by 30 per cent among children aged 5-12 years over the next five years in the region.
A specific objective provides you with exactly what you need to measure in your evaluation. Clearly, the
above objective tells you to count how many children and parents you’ve reached in your safety awareness
presentations, along with the number of head injuries and children wearing helmets before you started the
program and five years after. However, it would be good management to also count a reduction in injuries as
well as increased helmet use during the life of the program to be sure you are moving toward the objective.
Applying evaluation findings
Results and findings from your mid-program evaluation should be used to revise your program. Counting at
the beginning of activities for the cycling season and at the end for each of the five years of a program should
show a steady increase in helmet usage. If not, make revisions in your program activities.
“
By using your baseline data you
can track data for changes ...
Concentrate more on trends and
looking for a gradual decline over a
prolonged period.
52
”
Chapter review
Use these questions to check over your program processes in place to keep the ball rolling:
•
Are you staying on top of the results of your program activities so you can spot opportunities yet remain
flexible to change?
•
Does your Safe Communities committee seek help from external resources including your designated
coordinator?
•
Do Safe Communities committee members report information for evaluation when activities get
completed?
•
Are you monitoring your program and then reporting your results to the committee?
•
Did you establish baseline data for each program objective?
•
Are you measuring successes against your baseline data every year?
•
Have you evaluated the success of your program based on the question, “Did it work?”
•
Why did your program work?
•
Did you report your Safe Communities program results to the ASCF?
•
Did you celebrate the success and accomplishments of your program?
Tips to remember
•
Take pride in the accomplishments of your Safe Communities program, and then look at your activities to
see if there’s room for improvement.
•
Think positive.
•
Your program should help you change behaviour – so the results evaluation should measure behaviour.
Indicator five Evaluation measures to assess their programs, processes and the effects of change.
This final chapter explains the importance of evaluation, the different types of evaluation and also provides you
with useful steps for ongoing surveillance of your program processes. The chapter teaches you to plan your
evaluation well and to this measure the impacts of your programs.
53
Conclusion
In Australia, injury is still gaining recognition as a significant, and also preventable, cause of death and disability.
Consequently, professionals involved in community safety promotion and injury prevention often focus on
improving awareness levels about safety and injuries in communities. We also concentrate on collecting and
analysing data as evidence and to use as building blocks for developing and implementing safety promotion
programs for our community. Injuries can be prevented and everyone has a role to play in making communities
safer – you can make a difference.
The ASCF understands that setting up and operating a Safe Communities program involves time, commitment
and continuous hard work. The ASCF is available to provide support to communities and assist you. There
are also some state-based supporting agencies and networks across Australia that can help you. These state
and territory based networks have links with the ASCF. In order to find the best contact for your organisation,
visit: www.safecommunities.org.au.
Your neighbouring Safe Communities
You are not the first community to undertake an injury prevention and safety promotion program. Other Safe
Communities can be valuable sources of information and may be able to assist you in getting started. In many
areas, Safe Communities have formed networks among themselves to share ideas, motivate each other and
provide support. If they can’t help you, they may have contact with another Safe Community that has similar
priorities as your community, demographics and/or priority safety areas. The ASCF and other state or territory
based networks can help you make contact with these other Safe Communities and networks.
Our common goal
To make Australia the safest country in the world to live, learn, work and play – one community at a time.
Together, we can build a safe community. It only takes that one spark – that one person in a community to
start the ball rolling. Before long, people throughout your community will begin asking themselves: “Am I doing
something safe? Can I do anything else to protect myself and the people around me?”
To create a safety culture, we must consider safety in every element of our lives. This holistic approach provides
the essential ingredient to achieving our goal. Never forget that there are many opportunities to improve safety
– at home, in the workplace, on the road, in public spaces – basically, everywhere, all the time.
Safety is considered a fundamental human right; all people should have an equal opportunity to live and work
in Safe Communities. (Source: WHO, 1989. Manifesto for Safe Communities, Safety- A Universal Concern and Responsibility for All.)
The ASCF relies on feedback from committees like yours to continually improve our support documentation.
If you have any comments or suggestions about improving this guidebook, please contact us.
Telephone: (08) 8204 9840
Facsimile: (08) 8204 9500
Email:
[email protected]
54
Attachment One
What is a community champion?
Champion – ‘one that defends, fights for, or supports a cause, another person or an innovation’.
(American Heritage Dictionary)
A champion is required to
•
Take a leadership position in advancing the cause i.e. Safe Communities program.
•
Encourage the policy makers or decision makers initially and nurture their commitment to support the
program.
•
Have an interest in the Safe Communities program and step forward to actively promote it.
•
Be a spokesperson for the cause.
Attributes of a champion are
•
Good communication skills.
•
A visible and prominent person of some regard or esteem in the community.
•
Have an interest in safety and injury prevention – someone with a personal story to tell can be good, so as
to promote community and public interest.
•
Time and energy to promote the cause.
•
A good knowledge of the cause they are championing, and the community in which they are championing it.
•
Ability to consult with relevant stakeholders to get a true and correct picture of what the cause is about,
its process, and vision.
55
Australian Safe
Communities
Foundation
Telephone: (08) 8303 0480
Facsimile: (08) 8463 4978
Email: [email protected]

Safe Communities How to Guidebook Australian Safe Communities

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