Opinion: We need to be bold about how we connect and act in our communities

By Ian Bretman, Chair of Neighbourhood Watch Network. 

If you lost your wallet or purse in the street, what do you think the chance are of it being returned to you? And if it contained a large sum of money, do you think it would be more or less likely to be returned than if it was empty? 

Well, those questions have been regularly tested in a global survey conducted for the United Nations, and the findings closely match overall levels of happiness. While the results vary across different nations, the rate of return is consistently about twice as high as people thought it would be. Also interesting, is that wallets containing large sums of money are more likely to be returned than those with small sums, or no money at all, showing that people are more honest than we might think. 

This experiment was part of the UN’s World Happiness Report which measures several factors to rank the world’s happiest countries (they are Finland, Denmark, Iceland and Sweden if you’re thinking of relocating). One of the report’s editors summed up the findings by saying "people are much happier living where they think people care about each other".

That sentence is a great way of thinking about our work at Neighbourhood Watch and it’s been central to the development of our new strategy for the next few years. Of course, crime prevention is an incredibly important element of our work and it will remain so in the future. Providing information and services that help people to avoid becoming a victim of crime will always be at the heart of what we do – but it doesn’t actually describe who we are and why we exist. 

And that’s important, because although we are very well-known, there are too many incorrect and out-dated assumptions about the purpose and nature of our work – and that can be a barrier to people joining and getting more actively involved. One of the most important objectives for the strategic review we conducted last year, was to ensure that Neighbourhood Watch remains relevant and impactful for the future.

We started the process by conducting a survey of why people join Neighbourhood Watch and what issues they would like to see us focus on. We received 11,000 responses from active volunteers, registered supporters and the wider public. Those responses told us that reducing crime and antisocial behaviour and avoiding being the victim of crime remain very important reasons for joining. But, a very substantial majority were motivated by knowing more about what is going on in their neighbourhood, improving and being involved with the local community and making connections with their neighbours. 

Similarly, when asked about what we should prioritise in our new strategic plan, helping people connect with their neighbours came top of the list, followed by increasing opportunities for young people to get involved, and helping to reduce isolation and loneliness.

To respond to this feedback we have based the new strategy on three pillars. Alongside the familiar Neighbourhood Watch activities, which will building on our traditional work in crime prevention and which will continue to be our over-arching identity, we will have Neighbourhood Connect (helping people to connect with their neighbours) and Neighbourhood Act (enabling everyone to join practical activities to improve their neighbourhoods). 

These pillars will provide new and better opportunities for local associations and our Central Support Team to talk about our work, encourage more people to get involved, and explore collaborations and partnerships with other groups and organisations.

I suppose these might sound like high-blown, lofty ambitions and you could rightly ask – what will they mean in practice? Well, that actually depends on all of us, because our movement is genuinely devolved. Neighbourhood Watch Network supports grass-roots membership to focus on their local needs and priorities, and ensures those voices are heard and represented at a national level. 

That is why we developed the strategy with a steering group made up of members as well as regular reporting to, and engagement with, Association Leads. As Chair of the national charity, along with my fellow trustees and the central support team, we have been determined that this strategy represents the whole movement, created with our members, for our members.

The discussions that led to the new strategy included loads of ideas for new ways of working and I’m sure we will see some of these take shape quite soon. I was also pleased to see the importance that our members are placing on tackling anti-social behaviour, harassment and threatening behaviour (especially against women and girls) and on frauds and scams, particularly those executed online. These are sometimes described as “low-level crimes” because they are not as dramatic or headline grabbing as homicides or robberies. But they are massive problems that are a blight on all our lives, fostering fear and suspicion, and weakening our sense of community.

As this strategy is delivered, I am confident that Neighbourhood Watch will contribute to local efforts to build neighbourhoods and communities. We all want to live in places where people care about each other, where people feel less lonely and better connected, and where crime is less likely to thrive. 

I hope that you are as excited by the potential of this, as we are at Neighbourhood Watch Network and that you will help us make it a reality.  Read the Neighbourhood Watch Strategy 2026-2030 here.