Neighbourhood Watch SA is a community crime prevention program delivered by the Neighbourhood Watch Volunteers Association of SA Inc. in partnership with South Australia Police (SAPOL).
The vision of Neighbourhood Watch SA is to create a safe and connected community.
This will be achieved by:
Evidence suggests that an active Neighbourhood Watch program can reduce crime by 16-26%. So we’re confident the program works!
Led by local volunteers, Neighbourhood Watch Areas exist across the state. They each have a focus on driving the Neighbourhood Watch SA vision in their local community. They do this by focusing on the interests and needs of their local community.
It all starts with you! Volunteers are the backbone of Neighbourhood Watch SA. They manage the program at a local level, driving safety and connectedness.
As a Neighbourhood Watch SA volunteer there are no set hours required. You can give as much or as little time as you feel comfortable.
You can get involved with Neighbourhood Watch in a way that suits you too. You could take on something that matches your skill set or try something new to develop your experiences.
The Neighbourhood Watch volunteer is one of many volunteer opportunities available within SAPOL. Check out other volunteer opportunities here.
Each Neighbourhood Watch Area has a number of office-bearers who contribute to the running of the group. These positions may include the Area Coordinator, Secretary, Treasurer and Newsletter Editor.
Area Coordinators attend regular meetings with other Area Coordinators in their local metro District or Country LSA. The aim of these meetings is to share information and strategies between different Neighbourhood Watch Areas in the same geographical area.
State Councillors are elected by Area Coordinators from their District or LSA to represent them at State Council meetings.
State Council meetings take place quarterly and are a way of communicating information from the Board of Management to local Neighbourhood Watch Areas. State Councillors can also raise local issues or seek information or advice from the Board.
The Board of Management consists of State Councillors and two external Board members who are elected to represent Neighbourhood Watch SA at the highest level.
The Board meets monthly with the Neighbourhood Watch State Coordinator and other representatives from SAPOL to share information, problem solve issues and develop strategic plans for the future.
Ben is the President of the Board, the Chair of the Eyre & Western LSA, and also the Area Coordinator of Whyalla Area #277.
He’s fully invested in NHW having been involved since 2001. A driven community member, he was awarded a Community Service Award by Whyalla Council in 2022 for his longstanding contribution to the area.
Ben is a passionate follower of AFL, AFLW and cricket, supporting Port Adelaide and the Baggy Greens and spends a lot of his spare time supporting his wife with her breast cancer support group - the Whyalla Pink Spirits. His work as a Justice of the Peace also keeps him busy.
He was once a vehicle mechanic but still gets called upon by the locals for advice which “keeps the grey matter working”.
If you’re a country based NHW Area or volunteer and need some extra support Ben will be happy to help!
Phil is the Vice President of the Board and is also the Area Coordinator of the Hope Valley/Highbury Neighbourhood Watch Area #222.
Andy joined the St Clair Neighbourhood Watch Area #628 in 2019 as their Secretary and Media Coordinator, and became the group’s Area Coordinator the following year. She is also a State Councillor and Treasurer for Western District NHW.
Andy has lived in St Clair for 10 years and grew up in Cheltenham, and over the years has seen many changes in the area. She has been a volunteer with St Vinnies for 7 years as the Shopping Co-ordinator for one of the Fred's Van sites. She also collects food for charities.
Andy would say that her biggest role is as a Mum to her 15 year old son. She loves her footy and has been an Adelaide Crows member for 30 years – she was there in ‘97 and ‘98 to see them win the flag.
“I want to see St Clair become a community looking out for each other, neighbour by neighbour!”
Heather is the Area Coordinator of the Morphett Vale Neighbourhood Watch Area #163.
George is the Treasurer of the Board and is also the Area Coordinator of the Woodcroft Neighbourhood Watch Area #414.
Pat and her husband Mal became members of the Goolwa Neighbourhood Watch Area #272 back in 1998 when they moved from bustling Adelaide to peaceful Goolwa. They were welcomed by the local SA Police Sergeant and over the next few years delivered newsletters and attended local meetings.
Around 2011 Pat “jumped in the deep end” and agreed to become the group’s Area Coordinator and learn what NHW is all about. In her own words “It has been a wonderful journey, meeting and learning from other Neighbourhood Watch members from groups all over SA”.
Pat also volunteers with St Johns in Goolwa in a fundraising role, and is currently the coordinator of the Goolwa Community Craft Shop which donates their profits each year to other volunteer groups.
Pat’s interests include travelling (she regularly travels to the East Coast of Australia to visit her great-grandchildren) and gardening (she calls her garden a ‘surprise garden’ due to not always remembering what is planted where).
James is an external member of the Board and in his professional career is a solicitor for the Attorney-General’s Department.
Robin is an external member of the Board and in his professional career is a University lecturer and professor of Business and Marketing.
Neighbourhood Watch began in South Australia as a crime prevention initiative on 1 May 1985 with the launch of the pilot Flinders Park Neighbourhood Watch area.
It wasn’t long before community pressure grew to expand Neighbourhood Watch into other suburbs and towns. Flinders Park set a solid foundation for the future of the program:
Just over a year later, on 5 May 1986, Salisbury North Neighbourhood Watch area began operating, with many more areas starting up over the next few years.
The success of the Neighbourhood Watch program was on show at the Neighbourhood Watch seminar held at the Fort Largs Police Academy on 13 August 1988. The seminar was attended by 142 delegates with 3,200 Neighbourhood Watch volunteers and their families being treated to displays from STAR Force, the Dog Squad, emergency services and music from the Band of the South Australia Police.
The concept of ‘Watch’ was expanded beyond the traditional Neighbourhood Watch in the late 1980s and early 1990s with the launch of:
At the 10th birthday celebrations of Flinders Park Neighbourhood Watch area in 1995 the Deputy Commissioner Pat Hurley stated that in addition to Flinders Park ‘another 473 such programmes have been established’ and that the program’s aim is ‘to establish another 200 areas by the end of 1996’.
On 15 March 1997 the first Neighbourhood Watch SA state conference was held. The conference theme was ‘Watching into the future’. More than 500 volunteers attended and heard speeches from Judge Andrew Wilson, Police Commissioner Mal Hyde and criminologist Dr John Tomaino.
The years 2000 to 2005 saw some dramatic changes to the Neighbourhood Watch SA program. With the Focus 21 Review of Neighbourhood Watch and the Focus 21 Review of Community-based Policing, a proactive, problem-solving approach to crime reduction was slowly blended with the traditional approaches of Neighbourhood Watch. Key to this new approach was the implementation of the WatchSA management system and creation of the Board of Management, who are responsible for the strategic direction of the Neighbourhood Watch program. Some of the new initiatives during this time were:
On 4 July 2007, the town of Keith became the 600th Neighbourhood Watch group in South Australia and in 2008 Transit Watch was added to the growing WatchSA portfolio.
In 2012 the hard work and dedication of Neighbourhood Watch volunteers was highlighted by the Holden Hill Neighbourhood Watch area receiving the Federal Minister’s Award for Innovation in relation to internet safety, the theft of electronic equipment, and security of personal property when shopping.
In November 2016, Neighbourhood Watch SA underwent the first major step of a digital reinvigoration with the launch of its state-wide Facebook page. This was followed shortly by the launch of a new Neighbourhood Watch website, bringing Neighbourhood Watch SA firmly into the digital age.
In late 2017, the new Neighbourhood Watch SA mascot – a friendly German Shepherd pup – joined the team. After a Facebook competition which saw more than 300 names submitted, the winning name was announced as Watcher Jeff. Watcher Jeff has gone on to appear in a range of Neighbourhood Watch SA’s promotional material, and in person at countless community events.
In 2018 the Neighbourhood Watch Board of Management expanded with the appointment of two external Board members. The new Board members have contributed their valuable professional expertise and offered a fresh perspective on the future direction of the Neighbourhood Watch program.
Today there are over 130 active Neighbourhood Watch groups across South Australia with thousands of hard-working volunteers playing their part to make their communities safer.