Role of the Neighborhood Safety Watch Captains
<NAMES> are the captains/ coordinators of our Neighborhood Safety Watch program
LINKS
- The neighborhood Safety Watch Program is described here http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/neighborhood-watch.html
- Role of the Neighborhood Safety Captain is here http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/neighborhood-captains.html
- Role of the Neighborhood Block Captain is here http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/blockcap.html
- We discussed many best practices with neighborhood safety, it is here http://www.tinyurl.com/SaratogaSafety
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A NEIGHBORHOOD SAFETY CAPTAIN AND A BLOCK CAPTAIN
A Neighborhood Safety Captain/ Coordinator project manages the program for the overall neighborhood. They are the designated Neighborhood Leader.
They lead a team of Neighborhood Block Captains to the finish line - finally a Safety Watch sign in your neighborhood
ROLE OF A NEIGHBORHOOD SAFETY CAPTAIN A.K.A The neighborhood leader
The role entails setup and governance of the Safety Watch program - not very complicated. Includes the following:
- Establish communication for the neighborhood. Create an email google group for the neighborhood - and identify a moderator
- Divide your neighborhood into various zones - each zone a cluster of homes ~7 to 10 homes in each zone.
- Identify / recruit block captains for each zone. See below how to recruit block captains.
- Provide the block captains the information needed to establish the program by hosting a meeting at a coffee shop or at your home. See the template link and the google form link below
- Liaison with city of Saratoga and Sheriff's office as needed; meet with Block Captains as needed
- Keep the neighborhood informed as best as you can. Proactively communicate.
- Store the Master Neighborhood Directory in a safe spot (ideally an electronic copy)
OTHER NICE TO HAVE:
- Identify someone who will lead the annual Block Party. Annual Touch point - Make sure we rejuvenate the Neighborhood Safety Watch annually if not more frequently.
- Identify someone who will build a neighborhood database of surveillance cameras installed. You can also have neighbors register their cameras with Santa Clara County here http://santaclaraca.gov/government/departments/police-department/community/video-surveillance-camera-registration
- Identify someone who can put together a neighborhood web page - ideally a high school student
- Identify someone who will lead the Neighborhood Preparedness Initiate. Someone who will get CERT certified, offered by the city of Saratoga's Jim Yoke, once or twice a year
ESTABLISH A COMMUNICATION MECHANISM
The first step is create a communication mechanism for the neighborhood.
If there does not already exist one, you should consider creating a neighborhood email group (google group) that will be used for communication among the neighbors.
This will supplement Nextdoor as not everyone is on Next Door yet. Plus, it is NOT possible to send pointed messages just to our own neighborhood via NextDoor. A neighborhood email group makes sense.
Please invite friends and neighbors to join the email group once you have it.
Our suggestion is to maybe create a flyer that has details about this email group and distribute it around the neighborhood.
Connecting the whole neighborhood via this email group would be great and help facilitate effective, interactive communication.
Using an app such as REMIND to send text messages to everyone in the neighborhood is also a good idea
BUILDING THE NEIGHBORHOOD CONTACT DIRECTORY
NOTE: This is an alternate to block captains collecting the info in bits and pieces. The process below is effective if you have the email information for the whole neighborhood/ if you have an email group for the neighborhood already established
Please click on this url http://tinyurl.com/yourdirectory
Copy the form generated, add the names of the block captains (customize it to suit your neighborhood) and then email your neighborhood to submit their information
OR
You can have each block captain work with their neighborhood to collect their specific zone info
(Explained in the Block Captain Section)
HOW DOES REMIND APP WORK?
You may want to create group text message service, an additional communication framework, for your neighborhood
We have setup REMIND app for our neighborhood (there are many other services you can explore)
One of the neighborhood leaders can text message everyone from the neighborhood (whoever has signed up) any specific urgent information
We use this service with caution
HOW DOES REMIND APP work?
Download REMIND app on your smart phone
Create a new “Class" - call it your neighborhood name
Click “Show People how to join” and you are given instructions that you can broadcast to people via email how they can join this new text message service
Simple!
You could also setup a ‘class’ just for block captains
STEPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH
Read the 10 step (high level) check box to a successful launch here
#1 Divide the neighborhood into various zones - each zone a cluster of homes ~7 to 10 homes in each zone (done at the meeting). Just pick a cluster of homes that are close to each other. Homes in a court are naturally part of a single zone.
#2 Identify block captains in each zone. (more block captains needed)
#3 Meet with the Block Captains and get to know them. Ask them to compile a zone directory for their zone. You can find the explanation of the Block Captain role here http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/blockcap.html
#4 Each Block Captain will be requested to compile a zone directory. Here is how:
- Copy this Google form http://tinyurl.com/BlockCaptainForm, rename the copied google form with the name of the block captain and email each block captain a link. You will have to follow this step a few times = to the number of block captains needed for your neighborhood.
NOTE: Do not send the original Google form link - but send the new link you created once you have copied the form at the link
- Alternately, Block captains can skip the Google form if it is too complicated and download the block_captain_information_request_2-14.doc from here http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/blockcap.html and email neighbors of their zone this doc that they can fill
- Each Block captain will request information from the neighbors of their zone and will follow-up until they have the information back from almost all the neighbors in the zone. Some neighbors may not wish to participate which is OK.
#5 Once Block Captains have all neighbors info compiled, they will share it with all the neighbors in that zone. This doc will be used to communicate between the neighbors of each zone and for each neighbor to have information about the neighbors in his or her zone.
#6 Block captains will email their zone directory to you (the Neighborhood Coordinators) once completed by each neighbor
Isha, Rishi Kumar, and I are happy to help with the logistics of the setup and answer questions as needed.
HOW DO I RECRUIT BLOCK CAPTAINS?
Probably the most difficult task in the role of a Neighborhood Safety Captain is ensuring that you have all the block captains in place.
You likely already have a few block captains signed-up at the initial Neighborhood Safety Watch Program launch meeting. That is a great start!
After you have broken down your neighborhood into smaller zones, identify the gaps where you are seeking to fill block captains.
Below are a few approaches to recruiting block captains to fill these gaps, categorized based on ease of effort
- Post an email on the neighborhood group asking for help. Push the buttons, how this will help the neighborhood, make the message compelling.
- Organize a meeting with the block captains that have signed up so far, ask them for pointers to recruit their friends
- Knock on doors at streets where you are seeking to recruit block captains and ask folks to point you to the active neighbor who would be willing to step up
- Call friends in your neighborhood and ask for pointers.
- Distribute flyers on the streets you are seeking to recruit block captains. Scroll down below to download the template of the proposed flyer. It is a Powerpoint file. You can modify this to suit your message, print and drop off the flyers. Remember, do not place flyers in mailboxes, that is not legal. Try to have face to face conversations
- Ask people to subscribe to the neighborhood email group. Increase subscription and use the neighborhood email group, posting messages asking for volunteers
- Organize a Neighborhood wide party. Have folks sign-up to join the Neighborhood email group. Announce the Neighborhood Safety Watch initiative and get block capatins to sign up. Make sure you have identified the gaps you are looking to fill before this meeting
A TEMPLATE TO COMPILE A ZONE DIRECTORY
I really liked how the Chalet Lane neighborhood (led by Brian BERG and Jim Caratozzolo) put together a snapshot of their neighbors as part of their Master Database
There are 2 views
1. Pictorial neighborhood view
2. Excel grid of each street 3 columns- Names, Phones, Emails, which is effectively your master spreadsheet
You can see view #1 if you scroll all the way down at this page
http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/neighborhood-captain.html
You can recruit a few middle school and high school kids in your neighborhood once you have the information back from the block captains and have them work on this project
FINAL STEPS
- Please store the master spreadsheet with all neighbors' contact info in a safe location
- Schedule a neighborhood meeting and invite the Sheriff to review the Neighborhood Safety Watch. The Sheriff’s office will authorize the city to place a street sign saying “NEIGHBORHOOD CRIME WATCH”. There is no cost to the neighborhood for this sign.
- Plan an annual touch point - perhaps at the annual block party - with all the block captains. Request the block captains to once again refresh their zone database.
- Volunteer a neighbor to get CERT certified and lead the Neighborhood Preparedness Initiatve
CERTIFYING YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD SAFETY WATCH PROGRAM
For details visit http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/neighborhood-watch.html
REGISTRY PROGRAM: NEIGHBORHOOD SAFETY WATCH PROGRAM
For details visit http://dehavillandcox.weebly.com/neighborhood-watch.html