Family violence, youth crime, drugs, and road policing were key topics covered in a Melton Neighbourhood Policing forum last week.
Held on Wednesday, May 7 at Melton Community Hall, the event featured a panel of Victoria Police representatives and questions were taken from the audience throughout the event.
Melton Police local area commander and acting inspector Pat Cantone said expert speakers in the fields of family violence, youth, crime, drugs, and road policing each presented “an overview of their work groups, the challenges they encounter, and the initiatives being implemented to combat these issues and to further enhance community safety”.
“The community members then were provided an opportunity to ask our panel questions around each topic, which provided further insights into how we are addressing each issue and the valuable work we undertake with relevant stakeholders,” Acting Inspector Cantone said.
“Pleasingly, about 50 of our community members and key stakeholders attended. Community members provided police with valuable insights in relation to their concerns, particularly around family violence.”
Acting Inspector Cantone said the neighbourhood policing forums provide police the opportunity to listen to “our residents and stakeholders which assist us to task our resources accordingly as well as building relationships”.
“Community safety is something that is built by having a team approach and a partnership with our community … we were honoured to have the opportunity to interact with our community and provide them with an insight into what we are doing to make our community safer, including the programs we support aimed at diverting people, in particular, our youth, away from the criminal justice system.”
Acting Inspector Cantone said that the Melton Police Service Area has a specialised Family Violence Investigation Unit at Caroline Springs.
“With a focused approach to family violence, we are also able to ensure early intervention, provide support services for victims and their families through our partners such as Orange Door,” he said.
