Press release
Minister Naughton announces Chairs for Waterford and Longford Local Community Safety Pilots
Published on
Last updated on
- Mr Seán Aylward to Chair Waterford Local Community Safety Partnership pilot
- Ms Martina Moloney to Chair Longford Local Community Safety Partnership pilot
- pilots to run for next two years ahead of national rollout
- Minister also publishes Community Safety Policy Paper
The Minister of State with special responsibility for Civil and Criminal Justice, Hildegarde Naughton TD, has today announced the Chairs for the new Local Community Safety Partnership pilots in Waterford and Longford.
The Waterford pilot will be chaired by Mr Seán Aylward, while the Longford pilot will be chaired by Ms Martina Moloney. The two pilots, in addition to a third in Dublin’s north inner city where Mr Cormac Ó Donnchú has already been appointed Chair, will run for the next two years ahead of a national rollout to all local authority areas.
Minister Naughton said:
"I would like to thank Martina Moloney and Seán Aylward for agreeing to Chair the new Local Community Safety Partnerships in Longford and Waterford respectively. The establishment of these Partnerships is key to the implementation of the recommendations of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland and will ensure that local communities have a real say in ensuring that their communities are safe and feel safe.
"Both Martina and Seán will bring extensive expertise and experience to their roles and I look forward to working closely with them, and with the local communities, over the coming months as the Partnerships are established."
The Local Community Safety Partnerships will replace the joint policing committees, building on the work they have done to date. Each Partnership will devise and oversee a Local Community Safety Plan, which will be informed by the community itself. The Plans will detail how best the community wants to prevent crime and will reflect community priorities and local safety issues. The goal is to make communities safer for families, residents and businesses.
The Minister has also published a policy paper on Community Safety, which provides an overview of what Community Safety is, how the new approach will make a difference, and how the Partnerships will work.
The Minister added:
"The concept of community safety is about people being safe and feeling safe in their own community. At the heart of this policy is the principle that every community has the right to be and feel safe in order to thrive and flourish. Ireland is generally regarded as a safe country in international terms, with relatively low crime rates and a general feeling of safety and security. However, we recognise that this is not the case in every community and that many people can experience a different reality.
"The new Community Safety policy will ensure communities are safer and feel safer by making community safety a whole of government responsibility and priority, to be delivered through the Local Community Safety Partnerships, supported through a national governance structure. This structure will ensure that communities are empowered to have a strong say in what actions are prioritised by the services operating in their area, and will also have a key oversight role in ensuring those actions are followed through."
Membership of the Partnerships will include: residents; community reps (including youth, new communities and voluntary sector); business and education reps; relevant public services including HSE, Tusla, Gardaí and the local authority; and local councillors. Training will be provided to support the capacity of the Partnerships to work together, including individual training for residents to develop their understanding of their role and to build confidence in representing their community.
As the pilots progress, they will be carefully evaluated and any necessary changes made to ensure the Partnerships work as effectively as possible for the communities involved. The pilots will inform the further development of the Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill, which will facilitate the rollout of Local Community Safety Partnerships in every local authority area.
The Community Safety Policy Paper can be downloaded from the Department of Justice website here:
Seán Aylward lives in Waterford and is currently the Chairperson of SOLAS. He previously served as Chairman of the Organisational Review and Implementation Merger boards of Waterford City and County Councils, Under Treasurer (CEO) of the Kings Inns, Secretary General of the Department of Justice and Equality (2004 to 2011), and Director General of the Irish Prison Service. He holds an MSc Econ (Public Service Management) from TCD and BA (English & Economics) from UCD.
Martina Moloney has a strong background in local government and governance, having worked as County Manager/Chief Executive in Louth County Council and Galway County Council. She was also centrally involved in the initial Joint Policing Committee pilots during her time in Louth County Council. Ms Moloney holds a BA and MA in Public Management and a Doctorate in Governance and is a member of the Institute of Accounting Technicians. She is a Member of the National Oversight & Audit Commission for Local Government since 2014.