Community Safety
Everyone deserves to live in a safe community.
Labor and the Liberals' approach to crime clearly isn't working. Despite Victoria having more police than any other state, people don't feel any safer. We need a different approach.
The Greens will invest $1 billion into community safety, investing in what works.
We will establish a new Office of Community Safety and Crime Prevention, dedicated to taking an evidence-based and community-led approach to safety.
We will invest in a statewide mental health outreach and crisis response. Trained health, mental health and social workers will be visible in our communities, who can step in early to prevent and de-escalate crises, and connect people with the right support.
And we’ll address the root causes of crime by investing in mental health, addiction services, homelessness support, housing, youth and family services – which have all been cut by Labor. But Labor has cut crime prevention programs, underfunded support services and is demolishing public housing while homelessness gets worse.
Explore our plan for Community Safety
- Establish a new Office of Community Safety and Crime Prevention
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The Greens will establish a new Office of Community Safety and Crime Prevention dedicated to taking a whole-of-government, coordinated approach, bringing funding for prevention and crisis outreach under one roof - inspired by New York after the city recorded its safest summer on record.
Victoria currently takes a disconnected and uncoordinated approach to prevention with 167 separate crime prevention programs spread across 10 different government departments. A recent auditor-general report into youth crime prevention found that the small amounts the government has put into prevention have no clear targets or goals to ensure money is going towards solutions that work.
The new Office of Community Safety and Crime Prevention will be responsible for investing in programs that are proven to work to reduce crime and keep communities safe, including statewide health-led crisis outreach, crime prevention, early intervention and diversion programs.
- 24/7 crisis outreach teams of health and social workers visible in the community
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The Greens will put visible crisis outreach teams in the community. Trained health, mental health and social workers will be visible and available within the community, ready to step in early, de-escalate and connect people with the right support.
These will be visible, trained teams in public spaces - their presence and work will make us all safer. Not every situation requires police, and with more support on the ground police will be free to focus on violent and organised crime.
- Preventing crime before it happens
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The Greens will invest in programs proven to prevent crime before it happens - using data from across government departments to put resources where they’re needed most.
The Greens want to see funding allocated in close collaboration with local communities to allocate support where it’s needed and proven to work - like the Venny playground in Kensington, YSAS in Collingwood, and other grassroots community initiatives that are supporting our young people - staffed by youth workers, engaging kids while helping them access mental health specialists, nutritionists, mentors, drivers and homework tutors.
- Investing in frontline homelessness, mental health, alcohol and other drug services
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The Greens will make big investments in services that prevent crime before it happens and reduce inequality - which is one of the key drivers of crime.
We will increase funding for frontline mental health, alcohol and other drug treatment, homelessness and family and domestic violence services. This is on top of the Greens commitment to double the number of public homes and fully fund public schools, so all children can stay in school and access quality education. And we will tax the extreme wealth and big corporations, so we can pay for the services which give everyone a fair go and real options in life.
- Fund frontline and prevention family violence services
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We are in a family violence epidemic, with one woman killed every single week due to domestic and family violence in Australia.
Frontline services supporting victim-survivors are stretched to their limits doing critical work with limited resources. Without proper investment in both frontline support and primary prevention, we risk failing those most in need and undermining long-term efforts to break the cycle of violence.
This includes the expansion of culturally appropriate services. We know that women from culturally diverse communities experience more social isolation, visa abuse and multiple barriers to accessing services.