BACKGROUNDER
The National Strategy on Community Safety and Crime Prevention
Crime in Canada has traditionally been dealt with primarily through reactive measures — the apprehension, sentencing, incarceration and rehabilitation of offenders. According to Statistics Canada estimates (1994-95), almost $10 billion a year is
spent by governments on Canada’s criminal justice system (i.e., police, courts and corrections). However, this amount represents a small portion of the total costs of crime. If the personal and physical costs — such as costs associated
with pain and suffering of victims or lost productivity — are included, the annual cost of crime in Canada may be as high as $46 billion. Moreover, this figure does not include the cost of white collar crime, tax evasion or stock market
manipulation.
There are other costs of crime that cannot be quantified. Crime hurts people and makes them feel unsafe; it decreases quality of life and changes the face of our communities. The ripple effects of crime are felt in a broad range of sectors including
health, social services, education, labour and employment.
In order to prevent crime, action must take place at the community level. It is the people who live, work and play in a community who best understand their area’s resources, problems, needs and capacities.
NATIONAL STRATEGY ON COMMUNITY SAFETY AND CRIME PREVENTION (PHASE I)
The National Strategy on Community Safety and Crime Prevention is designed to help Canadians create safer communities, by supporting community-based crime prevention efforts, enhancing communities’ knowledge and experience with respect to crime
prevention and fostering partnerships and collaboration.
The Government of Canada launched Phase I of the National Strategy in 1994. This phase provided a framework for federal efforts to support community safety and crime prevention; encouraged federal, provincial and territorial cooperation; and
emphasized the mobilization of Canadians to take action at the community level to prevent crime. As part of Phase I, the federal government created the National Crime Prevention Council (1994–1997), made up of 25 individuals — child
development experts, community advocates, academics, social workers, lawyers, police officers, doctors and business people — who volunteered their time to develop a plan to deal with the underlying causes of crime.
Promoting crime prevention through social development, the former Council focused on children and youth and developed models for dealing with the early prevention of criminal behaviour. These models showed that children need adequate care throughout
their early lives, and this extends to what happens before they are born. Above all else, children need good parenting. At the same time, there is a need to eliminate, to the extent possible, known risk factors in children’s lives, such as
abuse, poverty, and drug and alcohol abuse. We know that children grow up to be good citizens when they have had the benefit of developing in a nurturing family and community environment.
The National Strategy on Community Safety and Crime Prevention
NATIONAL STRATEGY ON COMMUNITY SAFETY AND CRIME PREVENTION (PHASE II)
Building on the excellent work of the former Council, Phase II of the National Strategy aims to increase individual and community safety by equipping Canadians with the knowledge, skills and resources they need to advance crime prevention efforts in
their communities.
The objectives of the National Strategy are:
 to promote the integrated action of key governmental and non-governmental partners to reduce crime and victimization;
to assist communities in developing and implementing community-based solutions to problems that contribute to crime and victimization, particularly as they affect children, youth, women and
Aboriginal people; and
to increase public awareness of and support for effective approaches to crime prevention.
The National Strategy is comprised of the following components: a Safer Communities Initiative; a Promotion and Public Education Program; a Private Sector/Non-Profit Body on Crime Prevention; and the newly created National Crime Prevention Centre
within the Department of Justice Canada which has the responsibility to implement the National Strategy, in partnership with Solicitor General Canada. The following outlines in detail these components:
1. New National Crime Prevention Centre ($2.2 million) The $32-million initiative will be implemented by the newly created National Crime Prevention Centre overseen by a National Chair. Barbara Hall, former Mayor of Toronto and
long-time community safety advocate, has been appointed to the position of National Chair. As part of her responsibilities, Ms. Hall will chair a steering committee which will advise on emerging crime prevention issues. She will be assisted by a
Vice-Chair, Vera Danyluk, Chair of the Executive Committee of the Montreal Urban Community. The membership on this committee will also include the federal Deputy Minister of Justice, the federal Deputy Solicitor General, provincial deputy ministers of
Justice from Nova Scotia and Alberta, community crime prevention experts and federal government officials.
2. Safer Communities Initiative ($26.8 million) The Safer Communities Initiative is designed to assist Canadians in undertaking
crime prevention activities in their communities. Communities may be defined by geography, as in the case of neighbourhoods or towns, or by shared goals and experiences. The Initiative has three elements: the Community Mobilization Program, the Crime
Prevention Investment Fund and the Crime Prevention Partnership Program. The Community Mobilization Program ($17 million) The Community Mobilization Program helps communities develop comprehensive and sustainable approaches to
crime prevention and undertake activities that deal with the root causes of crime. The Community Mobilization Program aims:
to increase the development of broad, community-based partnerships focused on dealing with local crime prevention issues;
to increase public awareness of and support for crime prevention; and
to increase the capacity of diverse communities to deal with crime and victimization.
To find out more about the Community Mobilization Program, as well as how to apply for funding to support local projects, consult the Community Mobilization Program - Access Guide. The Crime Prevention Investment Fund ($7.5
million) The Crime Prevention Investment Fund supports selected demonstration projects of Canada-wide significance and encourages the sharing of information on quality crime prevention initiatives across Canada. It also supports research
and evaluation of the costs, benefits and overall effectiveness of comprehensive efforts to prevent crime and victimization.
The Crime Prevention Investment Fund aims:
to identify and support the development of promising and innovative crime prevention models;
to conduct rigorous evaluations to determine the components of successful programs and the extent to which they can be replicated in similar settings (both urban and rural) across the
country;
to facilitate the sharing of information on quality crime prevention programs that are community-based, multidisciplinary, cost-effective and sustainable over the long term; and
to promote savings in the longer term through improvements to existing programs, in order to achieve more integrated, cost-effective crime prevention approaches.
To find out more about the Crime Prevention Investment Fund consult the Crime Prevention Investment Fund - Access Guide. The Crime Prevention Partnership Program ($2.3 million) Canada’s approach to crime prevention can
be strengthened by providing support to, and encouraging the involvement of, national and international non-governmental organizations that can directly contribute to community crime prevention efforts. The Partnership Program aims:
to support the involvement of organizations that can contribute to community crime prevention activities; and
to develop information, tools and resources that facilitate community participation in all phases of crime prevention (e.g., the assessment of needs, development of plans, implementation and
evaluation) that can be applied across Canada.
To find out more about the Crime Prevention Partnership Program consult the Crime Prevention Partnership Program - Access Guide
3. Promotion and Public Education ($1 million) A National Resource Centre will be established to increase public awareness, as well as provide assistance to Canadians seeking information on crime prevention solutions for communities.
It will also help community groups exchange information on crime preven-tion projects so that communities across Canada can benefit from each other’s experiences. As well, community experts and leaders from a variety of sectors, including the
media, will be invited to speak publicly about dealing with the crime problems in our communities.
4. Private Sector/Non-Profit Body on Crime Prevention ($2 million) The key role of this new body will be to raise public awareness at
the national level and to undertake specific crime prevention projects, while encouraging the financial participation of the private sector. Details on this new body will be released in the near future. OTHER FEDERAL PROGRAMS CONTRIBUTING TO
CRIME PREVENTION
Phase II of the National Strategy on Community Safety and Crime Prevention is complemented by other government initiatives, especially those aimed at children and youth. These include:
Youth Justice Renewal Strategy
National Children’s Agenda
Community Action Plan for Children
Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program
Youth Employment Strategy
Millennium Scholarship Fund
Federal Action Plan on Gender Equality
Family Violence Initiative
"Gathering Strength: Canada’s Aboriginal Action Plan" — The federal government’s response to the final report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples
Aboriginal Justice Initiative
First Nations Policing Policy
Aboriginal Head Start
FOR MORE INFORMATION
To obtain further information on the National Strategy on Community Safety and Crime Prevention Phase II contact:
The National Crime Prevention Centre
Department of Justice
St. Andrew’s Tower
284 Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H8
Toll-free: 1-877-302-NCPC
Tel.: (613) 941-0505
Fax: (613) 952-3515
e-mail: ncpc@web.net
or visit the Centre’s Web site at http://www.prevention.gc.ca
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