“Schools united for change in Greenwich”

South London Citizens have contributed this article about the work they are doing with local schools in Greenwich.

Over the past year or so, children and parents from three Greenwich primary schools in membership of South London Citizens have been working together to address issues of street safety.

When a 10-year old child from St Joseph’s Primary School tells you that he doesn’t feel safe walking from his home to his local leisure centre (which is only five minutes away), when a child from Halstow Primary School tells you that she can’t go and visit her friend in the evening even though she only lives a few streets away from her, when a child from St Alfege with St Peter’s Primary School tells you he is worried about going to secondary school next year as waiting for the bus with lots of other children can often be intimidating, members of South London Citizens in Greenwich get together and act.

Since a first meeting in May 2009 where twenty-five parents and children got together to think about safety in their local area, a lot has happened. Discussions between schools have taken place, research has been carried out to identify problems which have then been refined into specific issues, and actions have developed to make things better. The CitySafe campaign – a community-led campaign that addresses issues of street safety and which builds positive relationships between schools, the police, and local neighbours – has been involving scores of like-minded citizens who believe in a world where people work together.

If you look at what you can find between St Alfege with St Peter’s, St Joseph’s, and Halstow primary schools, what do you find? Lots of shops is the answer!

Groups of children and parents decided, therefore, to approach the hundred or so shopkeepers that work on Trafalgar Road and the portion of Woolwich Road that goes to the East Greenwich Library and asked them to work with South London Citizens to make the area safer. But what do you ask shopkeepers in order to make the area safer? Two main things:

1. You get them to pledge to report 100% of crime and anti-social behaviour
2. You get them to offer their premises as a place of haven for anyone in danger

Out of the hundred or so shops approached, about sixty agreed to join the CitySafe campaign. The local schools are building teams of children and parents who will visit the shops on a regular basis to review if and how the campaign is making things better.

In the past few days, sixty parents and children, joined by police officers, went to visit shops and got some great feedback. Some shopkeepers on Trafalgar Road, for instance, are pleased to report that police officers have been visiting the shops more regularly. Some young people have also been using the shops when they have not been feeling too safe. As the shops were visited, flowers were given to the shopkeepers by children as a sign of gratitude.

It is clear that things are not going to change overnight, but all the members of South London Citizens involved in this work in Greenwich agree that if you know you know and are ready to support your neighbours, your street becomes safer. This is the simple message the CitySafe campaign is spreading in the streets of Greenwich!

See a couple of videos about the CitySafe campaign across London and in Greenwich: www.southlondoncitizens.org.uk/citysafe and www.southlondoncitizens.org.uk/greenwich.

For more details on London Citizens and community organising, see a video on the Citizens UK blog: www.citizensukblog.org.