SWAN Hill police and headspace Swan Hill led a free barbecue at Apex Park on Wednesday night to engage with the local community, particularly young people.
The aim was to encourage the community to come together and forge positive relationships with services available to Swan Hill residents.
Leading Senior Constable Andrew Downes said Victoria Police wanted to forge relationships with community and other agencies and work better with local neighborhoods.
“I spoke to Kathryn Hindle from headspace, together with other agencies that have come along, like Rotary, and everyone wanted to come on board and support the concept,” Sen-Constable Downes said.
“So barbecues in the park came about. We are going to have another one next week in another location in Swan Hill and if that is a success we plan to do them more often.
“We thought it gives the kids something to do on a Wednesday night that is a little bit different.
“Have a snag, a few games and they get to know other agencies in the community as well, not just the police.
“They learn about Rotary, they learn about headspace and they are able to make those connections with the agencies and within their own community”.
Ms Hindle, headspace Swan Hill’s community engagement officer, said community engagement was important.
“It’s good to be out in the community and for people to get to know the faces of services, build relationships and trust,” she said.
“Headspace is all about early intervention and I think that is a focus for police at the moment as well.
“We are trying to be proactive instead of being reactive, building those relationships and trust so that we can get on top of things early in terms of youth crime but also mental health as well.
“It is important that we get the message out there to the community so that they can help support themselves, each other and their families.”
Sen-Constable Downes said it was always good to get outside, away from PlayStations and devices, and mix, talk, play, converse and enjoy each other’s company.
