DPPs consider challenges for policing in a shared future

The Northern Ireland Policing Board will tonight hold a special event to reflect on the contribution of District Policing Partnerships (DPPs) to policing in Northern Ireland and consider the challenges ahead for DPPs, the police and the community.

The meeting, organised as part of Community Relations Week, brings together DPP Members, PSNI, Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs) and members of the community to discuss their shared roles in working together to make Northern Ireland safer.

Speaking about the event, Policing Board Chairman, Vice Chairman, Barry Gilligan, said: “During the past four years, DPPs have helped shape local policing across Northern Ireland, allowing local people to have a say in how their area is policed.

“DPPs have been at the centre of the significant progress that has already been made in local policing. As policing moves into a new era, DPP Members must work together with the police and the community to build on the foundations that have already been laid.

“Community Relations Week gives organisations right across the public sector an opportunity to reflect on the progress that has been made in Northern Ireland in recent years and look to the challenges ahead.

“All of us who are involved in policing must use this opportunity to think about how we can do more to engage with the public, particularly in communities where support for the police has been lacking, in order to build public confidence, encourage people to co-operate with the police and, ultimately, make communities safer.

“This evening’s event will allow all those with a stake in local policing – DPPs, CSPs, the police and the community – to consider their roles and share their ideas for the future of policing in Northern Ireland.”

(JM/SP)