The National Office for Community Safety invites Public Participation Networks to submit expert input to the development of the National Strategy for Improving Community Safety.
The Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024 (‘the Act’), which commenced earlier this year, established a new national, statutory infrastructure to support a whole of government, whole of society approach to community safety. The Act mandates the development of a new National Strategy for the Improving of Community Safety. This Strategy will provide the policy framework for this new whole of government response to community safety issues as envisaged by the Act. The National Office for Community Safety, also established under the Act, is now in the process of developing this Strategy.
The first phase of this process seeks input from stakeholders with specialist knowledge, expertise or vested interest on issues relating to community safety as identified in the enclosed Issues Paper. A broader public engagement process will follow in the coming weeks. This initial targeted stakeholder engagement will inform future phases of the consultation and engagement process. Your expert input will also be vital to the development of the strategy itself and I strongly encourage your organisation to make a submission, the process for which is outlined below.
Submission Process:
Your PPN is invited to submit responses on one, a few, or all of the thematic areas raised in the enclosed Issues Paper. Please feel free to use the guiding questions in the Issues Paper document as a prompt, your PPN is not obliged to answer all of these questions.
Submissions must adhere to the following format:
Maximum length: not to exceed 3 A4 pages
- Formatting: use font size 11 and 1.5 line spacing
- Content: please reference the Issue Number(s) your submission addresses
Please save your completed submission document as Public Participation Networks National Strategy for Improving Community Safety Issues Paper Submission.
Completed submissions must be returned to strategy@communitysafety.ie by close of business Friday 28 November 2025. Any queries you may have in relation to this process should be directed to the same email address.
If this submission format is not suitable for you please contact strategy@communitysafety.ie who will discuss an alternative format with you.
Issues Paper to guide stakeholder submissions on the delivery of the first National Strategy for Improving Community Safety
The first National Strategy for Improving Community Safety
The National Strategy for Improving Community Safety is an unprecedented, whole-of government commitment to redefine and improve community safety across Ireland. Community safety is about being people being safe and feeling safe in their communities. It cannot be the responsibility of An Garda Síochána alone. Instead, community safety requires a strategic partnership approach, bringing together a range of service providers and the community to identify and respond to issues relating to community safety in a proactive, joined up way. The first National Strategy for Improving Community Safety will establish a foundational, responsive, and relevant policy framework that enables public service bodies and communities to begin to work together in a coordinated manner to make communities safer.
Purpose of this Issues Paper: Invitation to Stakeholders
This issues paper is your formal opportunity to directly shape the definitive national blueprint for community safety. It is the first stage of engagement to support the development and delivery of the National Strategy for Community Safety. It is designed to provide a framework to guide formal written submissions from key stakeholders with a professional expertise and/or interest in community safety matters. We seek your expert and professional insights to guide the development of actionable, high-impact measures within the Strategy. We invite you to share your views on any or all of the issues raised in this paper. Insights and knowledge gained from these submissions will be invaluable in shaping the strategy and will inform the design and focus of a wider public consultation phase.
Please note that this initial consultation exercise is focused on key stakeholders and subject-matter experts. A broader public consultation will follow.
Context
The recent commencement of the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024 (‘the Act’) provides a legislative basis for this whole of government, whole of society approach, making community safety a priority for all. The Act establishes a new national infrastructure in support of this shared responsibility for community safety. The National Office for Community Safety is one of the key pillars of this community safety infrastructure alongside the National Community Safety Steering Group and Local Community Safety Partnerships.
The Act also provides for the development of a National Strategy for Improving Community Safety. Following the commencement of the Act on 2 April 2025 the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs, and Migration, along with other relevant Ministers, is required to prepare and submit to Government for approval the first National Strategy for Improving Community Safety by April 2026. The process of developing this strategy is
being led by the National Office for Community Safety.
Key Issues
While ongoing, our research to date shows that community safety is a complex concept that extends beyond just the absence of crime. It is a multi-faceted idea with both objective and subjective dimensions. The paper provides a brief overview of key themes identified in a preliminary literature review of community safety and poses questions for which we are seeking your input. The objective dimension relates to measurable data, such as crime rates, emergency response times, and the presence of a public infrastructure. The subjective dimension, however, is rooted in individual and collective perceptions, i.e. how safe people feel in
their daily lives, in their homes, and in their communities. The two dimensions of community safety are not always aligned. A community with low crime rates may still have residents who feel unsafe due to factors including antisocial behaviour, inadequate lighting, or a lack of community cohesion. Based on the findings of our preliminary research, we have identified a number of overarching themes which may frame our approach to community safety. We are now inviting input on these and have provided some guiding questions to support you in developing your response.
Issue 1: Defining Community Safety
Community safety is not a one-size-fits-all concept. Our research indicates that its meaning can vary significantly from one community to another, and even among different groups within the same community. This makes defining community safety challenging. This issue seeks to explore the diverse understandings of community safety to get a clearer picture of what community safety can mean.
Guiding Questions: What does community safety mean? What factors contribute to people feeling safe/unsafe? Does community safety differ across different communities in Ireland? If so, how and why does this occur?
Issue 2: Community-Grounded Knowledge
The literature highlighted that successful community safety initiatives are often driven from the ground up, not imposed from the top down. This issue aims to gather your insights on the role of community-grounded knowledge in developing effective safety measures and what barriers exist to fostering it.
Guiding Questions: What roles do individuals, families, and community groups play in ensuring a safe community? What examples of successful community safety initiatives have you seen or been a part of? What made them effective? What facilitates/hinders communities in taking a more active role in their own safety?
Issue 3: Collaboration
The literature review found that successful collaboration can deliver real advantages in community safety, such as pooling resources and leveraging diverse expertise. However, it also highlights that collaborative work is complex and can be hindered by factors such as power imbalances and a lack of trust. Our research underscores the importance of a collaborative approach to community safety, involving both public agencies and the community itself. This issue seeks to gain insight into your experiences of collaboration and identify the key elements needed for it to be effective.
Guiding Questions: What are the enablers for effective collaboration? What are the barriers to effective collaboration? How can agencies (e.g. An Garda Síochána, local authorities, health services etc.) and communities work together more effectively to improve safety? Do you have examples where this has worked well? How can we ensure that all voices, particularly those often sidelined, are included in collaborative efforts to improve community safety?
Issue 4: Measurement
The literature review found that the objective measurement we use to track community safety aspects often do not align with how safe people feel in their daily lives. We need to find a way to measure the impact of our collective efforts in improving community safety. This issue seeks to gain your ideas on what success might look like and how we can measure it.
Guiding Questions: What are the most important indicators of community safety? How can we measure what truly matters to people? Is there a difference between felt safety and actual safety? What are the causal
factors of this? How might we measure, and address, this?
Issue 5 – Policy and Governance
Community safety is a whole-of-government priority, which means that national and local policies, across all sectors, play a crucial role in its success. The literature highlights that effective community safety interventions require supportive policy frameworks to ensure consistent resourcing and sustained cross-agency collaboration. Conversely, uncoordinated or contradictory policies can unintentionally create barriers or negatively impact community safety outcomes. This issue seeks to explore how the National Strategy can ensure that the broader policy landscape actively supports the improvement of community safety at a local level.
Guiding Questions: What national or local government policies currently support community safety? Do any policies hinder community safety? How can the National Strategy for Improving Community Safety best influence relevant agencies to ensure their policies actively contribute to safer communities?
Anything else?
We are aware that stakeholders may have views on other aspects of community safety. While five broad themes/issues are outlined above, we welcome insights on current, emerging or future trends which may influence community safety in the coming years. In addition, please feel free to highlight other matters which you feel we may not have asked you about in the previous questions.
Process and timeline for submission
Please save your completed submission document as National Strategy for Improving Community Safety Issues Paper Submission.
Submissions should be sent to strategy@communitysafety.ie. Submissions should be received no later than 28 November 2025. Please note that this initial consultation exercise is focused on stakeholders and subject-matter experts. The broader public consultation will follow.
Submissions must adhere to the following format: 1. Maximum length: not to exceed 3 A4 pages 2. Formatting: use font size 11 and 1.5 line spacing 3. Content: please reference the Issue Number(s) your submission addresses Where submissions go beyond this limit, the National Office may consider only the material provided within the specified page number and word count.
Respondents are advised that it is intended to publish all submissions online after the consultation.
Please note that all submissions received will be subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2014 and may also be published as part of any final reporting. Any personal data submitted as part of the consultation process will be treated in accordance with the requirements of the GDPR and the Data Protection Acts 1998 – 2018. Further information on the department’s Data Protection Policy can be found on
Department of Justice website here – Protecting Personal Data in the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration