Extra money for projects tackling violent crime in Sussex
£880,000 will go towards making communities safer
Extra Home Office funding is to be given to a partnership tackling the root causes of serious violent crime in Sussex.
The Violence Reduction Partnership (VRP) has been given £880,000 more for 2021/22 to protect young people and make communities safer.
Three VRPs have been set up in the county, with one specifically dedicated to serving West Sussex and others in Brighton and Hove and East Sussex.
Sussex has been identified as one of eighteen forces across the UK who will continue to benefit from funding to tackle serious violence, which comes to a further £35.5m.
Police & Crime Commissioner (PCC) Katy Bourne has secured £1,760,000 over the last two years for the county’s first Violence Reduction Partnership (VRP).
Sussex Police have used this funding to bring together local authorities, health and education to identify and address the complex root causes of violent crime.
Partners have eagerly adopted a public health approach to addressing violence. This has included embedding tactics such as: early interventions to help vulnerable young people and educate them on the consequences of criminality; working with local community organisations and targeted prevention programmes.
The further £880k available for Sussex is subject to receiving proposals from the VRP on spending allocations and these being agreed by the Home Office.
Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne said:
“The Home Office’s commitment to the future of our Violence Reduction Partnership is welcome news and will mean that Sussex Police and partners will be able to continue to intervene, rehabilitate and divert people away from crime, especially young people.
“We know now that this approach, to learning more about and tackling serious violence, is working and I’m reassured that, in Sussex, partners are taking a positive, united stand against serious violence by working together to make a real difference.”
Sussex Police Assistant Chief Constable Jayne Dando said:
“This additional funding will allow Sussex Police and our partners in local authorities, health, education and others to continue this vital work in tackling the complex root causes of serious violence in our society.
“Through this public health approach, we have seen fantastic early intervention programmes being carried out in local communities to prevent young people from becoming involved in crime.
“To make long-lasting and effective change we must keep working together to make our communities safer, protect young people and help them to build better futures.”
One of the projects set to receive funding is the charity Mentivity, which has been working with West Sussex County Council to provide mentoring services to young people who are identified as having multiple risks in school and at home during transition from middle school to high school.
The team carried out 80 mentoring sessions to 11 year 7 children across 5 high schools in Worthing during October to December 2020, with an emphasis on increasing protective factors and building positive relationships with teachers and other caring adults.