Crime Prevention Unit, New Zealand

Recent Developments in Prevention

In 2002, The New Zealand Government launched its Crime Reduction Strategy (CRS), a successor of the 1994 Crime Prevention Strategy, including several new priority areas of action. The current CRS framework of action includes actions to reduce family violence and child abuse, other violence and sexual violence, serious traffic offending, youth offending and re-offending, burglary, theft of and from cars and organised crime.

These priority areas of action are coordinated by New Zealand’s Crime Prevention Unit (CPU) located within the Ministry of Justice and headed by Director, Jeremy Wood.  The main functions of the CPU are to:

•act as the primary advisor to government on crime prevention policy and practice. This role implies CPU is involved in other areas of the Ministry of Justice, such as research, public law, and other areas of criminal justice policy.

•develop, support and fund effective community-based crime prevention initiatives, and

•facilitate government and community partnerships to achieve crime reduction outcomes.

Some of the key activities of the CPU which address their priority areas include:

• Reducing community and sexual violence: In June 2004, the government released its strategy to combat community and sexual violence, entitled Safer Communities Action Plan to reduce Community Violence and Sexual Violence (The Action Plan). The CPU is currently collating best practice material relating to community violence and sexual violence crime prevention initiatives. A National Taskforce for Community Violence Reduction led by Local Government New Zealand will be established to oversee the alcohol related violence and violence in public places priority areas.

• Reducing theft of and from cars: In January 2005 the government released the New Zealand Vehicle Crime Reduction Programme (VCRP). This strategy seeks a significant and sustainable reduction in theft of and from cars. The CPU is also collating best practice material on developing and implementing local vehicle crime reduction initiatives.

• Reducing Family Violence: Some of the projects currently being developed include, the Ngapuhi Abuse Prevention Strategy, Wellington Pacific Women's Project - Youth Project and the Wellington Maori Service Delivery Best Practices.

Furthermore, in the latter part of the year, the CPU website will include an updated resource section on best practice, toolkits, programme guidelines and links to pilot sites reduction initiatives.

More information, contact:

Crime Prevention Unit
PO Box 180
Wellington, New Zealand
Phone : +64-4-496-3350
Fax : +64-4-496-3351
Website at: http://www.justice.govt.nz/cpu/