Strategy

Safe & Sound was founded with the theory that improvements in public safety require the combination of law enforcement, community organizing and youth development.

 

In November 2018, Safe & Sound’s board of directors adopted a strategic plan ‘refresh,’ which will build on the momentum of the past several years. The plan is focused on refining our strategy and assessing new ways of supporting safe neighborhoods.

This ‘refresh’ comes on the heels of the completion of our first-ever, comprehensive strategic plan, adopted by the board of directors in 2015, and resulting in a complete organizational restructure. The plan included an overall shift in focus to building collective efficacy, or the strength of the neighborhood’s social fabric. Research has shown that this type of social cohesion and informal social controls are essential to reducing crime, and collective efficacy, along with concentrated disadvantage, determine a neighborhood’s level of safety. The cycle of crime and violence breaks as collective efficacy increases when youth and residents are invested and engaged in efforts to improve the quality of life.