Cllr Hugh Hunter, leader of South Ayrshire Council, on his Council's approach to fighting crime.
South Ayrshire Council is recognised across Scotland as a centre of best practice in delivering safer communities. The key to creating safer communities is partnership working and in South Ayrshire our Community Safety Partnership has been recognised by the Scottish Government as an area of good practice both in terms of dealing with antisocial behaviour and delivering youth justice services.
Our main priorities for the next three years will focus on alcohol misuse, violent crime - including violence against women – and antisocial behaviour.
In South Ayrshire we are working in partnership with local communities and agencies to reduce substance misuse, improve road safety, promote safety in the home, and tackle the effects of antisocial behaviour on the health of local people.
To achieve these objectives we draw on the experience of the full range of interested agencies, including the Council, Police, Fire Service and local Community Groups to identify the root causes of problems and set realistic objectives. Having clearly set out these objectives we design effective and innovative solutions which command the support of our local communities. We keep systematic records of our initiatives, which provide monitoring and evaluation information for partner agencies and the Scottish Government.