International Accreditation Boosts Regions Safety Profile

Tasman has gained ‘International Safe Community’ accreditation from the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Barbara Graves, co-ordinator of ‘Safe at the Top’ – the regional initiative aimed at making Tasman and Nelson a safer and healthier community – says the accreditation will be “a great opportunity to promote Nelson and Tasman as a safer and healthier place to visit and live.”

Seven reviewers from the International Safe Community Certifying Centre visited our region on the 12 July 2011 to carry out the WHO assessment.

To become an international safer community, local agencies and groups must work together to improve community safety, using a WHO framework to align work, identify needs, and make the best use of available resources.

The visiting assessors were welcomed at Whakatu Marae, then introduced to family violence and alcohol-related harm prevention programmes by local police. Next, they visited the Multicultural Resource Centre in Nelson, before heading to Saxton Field. The visit concluded with sessions at Fulton Hogan, to see workplace safety projects, and Sundial Square in Richmond, to view how the Square has been designed to deter crime.

Barbara Graves says ‘Safe at the Top’ has the vision of “Our Community Leading the way to Safety” and is supported by over 80 community organisations, including the Police, ACC, Tasman District Council, Nelson City Council, Nelson Marlborough District Health Board, the Ministry of Social Development, Nelson Bays Community Law, a representative of local Iwi and Fulton Hogan.

Director of the Safer Communities Foundation, Dr Carolyn Coggan, said that the Tasman/Nelson application was extremely comprehensive. In particular, she noted the commitment of the mayors of Tasman and Nelson to the project, and the strong support from government agencies and community groups.

Mark Preston-Thomas from ACC says “Agencies working together in Nelson Bays as an International Safer Community will result in less injuries, and reduced ACC claims.”

The Tasman and Nelson community will celebrate the achievement, receiving a plaque and flag from the World Health Organization, at a planned award ceremony on 30 August 2011.