Tara Murray
Brimbank police hope a new partnership with a group of Ardeer residents will pave the way for greater interaction between officers and the community.
Earlier this year, a group of Ardeer residents sent a letter to police, Brimbank council and local MPs, raising concerns about behaviour in the local community.
Police got in touch with the group, including going out to meet them, to discuss how they could work together.
One of the Ardeer group members, who asked not to be named, said residents didn’t know what to do about some of the illegal and anti-social behaviour in the area.
“There was a group already talking,” he said. “We sent out a letter and all signed it.
“We then started to begin reporting everything we saw to police. Everything we saw suspicious, we reported, and then in the group we had spoken about what we had seen.
“We began compiling evidence to assist the police.
“They were fantastic and they came down on a Sunday for a meeting at a local soccer ground.”
The resident said one of the key things the group discovered was that many people don’t report what they see to police.
“If the police aren’t given information, they can’t do anything about it,” he said.
“If you don’t tell them, they don’t have any idea. They aren’t able to monitor every house and street, it’s up to the community to inform them.”
Sunshine Acting Senior Sergeant Ricky Millar said police had set up an action plan with residents outlining how they could work together.
“The group was yelling out to the police as they were frustrated with what was happening,” he said.
“There was a strong collaboration between police and the group. We worked together.”
Acting Senior Sergeant Millar said they would continue to work with the the Ardeer community.
He said hoped that if any other groups had issues in their suburb that they would reach out to police so they can work together.
