We have worked with our community safety partnership and Impera Analytics to create a draft community-led community safety strategy and we're grateful to the hundreds of local residents who gave us their time and voices to help create our strategy.
Our draft strategy is about more than just tackling crime - it’s about making everyday life in Lichfield District feel safer, more connected, and more supported, especially where people feel that’s currently lacking.
It’s been shaped by hundreds of local voices, including residents just like you who spoke honestly about their experiences and hopes for their communities. Our draft strategy has also been supported by the police and fire services, Staffordshire County Council, Bromford and the Staffordshire Commissioner.
At its heart, the plan recognises that safety comes from four core areas:
- People - Building stronger relationships and trust between neighbours, generations, and local services.
- Places - Making sure public spaces feel safe, cared for, and welcoming.
- Policies - Ensuring decision-making is transparent, responsive, and rooted in local voices.
- Programmes - Supporting consistent, visible community activities that people can rely on.
What you might see or experience as a result
Some of the proposals are still in early stages, but here’s what difference the new strategy could make to you and your community:
| Better community spaces | There may be more investment of energy and resource in local centres that welcome all ages - places where older adults and young people can mix safely and informally. These might be based in familiar spots like leisure centres, and offer activities, support, or just a space to meet. |
| Improvements to streets and pathways | Residents could be invited to help audit local routes, like alleyways, towpaths or precincts, to highlight safety concerns. These insights would inform where better lighting, maintenance or design improvements are needed most. |
| More consistent local services | The strategy aims to ensure valued local services don’t just pop up temporarily but stick around. That might include more visible presence from community organisations, better links between local clubs, or clearer updates from councils or police. |
| A bigger say in what happens locally | New local forums could be set up where residents, youth, and community groups help shape safety plans in their areas. If you’ve felt unheard in the past, this may be an opportunity to be more directly involved, not just consulted. |
Next steps
Our draft strategy is now going through the approvals process and once approved we'll update this page - and we'll then get to work!
Nothing will change overnight. Many of the proposed actions require more planning, funding, and involvement from local services, and from residents, but by grounding this strategy in your lived experiences, it’s aiming for solutions that work for real life, not just on paper.
And, we need you to be a part of it - your voice and your presence, matters. Whether you’re reporting an issue, joining a local event, responding to a community safety campaign, or simply checking in on a neighbour, you’re part of what makes our district feel safer, so please do get involved.
View our draft community safety strategy.
