A second, £20m round of the Safer Streets Fund was launched by the Government in January 2021. This aims to build upon the momentum instilled by the first round of funding, offering Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) and Local Authorities the opportunity to invest in new hotspot areas.

Safer Streets Fund 2021-22 will maintain a number of the core characteristics of the fund that have made it a success to date, whilst making minor strategic changes such as allowing local authority led bids.

For 2021-22, a total fund of £20 million has been set, with a maximum of £432,000 grant funding per successful bid. There is a requirement for a 20% matched funding contribution towards the bid, which can be provided as a financial contribution, or the equivalent of 20% in resourcing costs, e.g. staff/officer time. Bidders will also have flexibility to use the matched funding contributions for a wider range of supplementary activity to their bid, e.g. officer resource in a hotspot.

At least one Designing Out Crime Officer (DOCO) from each police force has received additional training regarding the Safer Streets Fund and its principles for designing out crime. These officers also possess a Safer Streets Toolkit (a restricted document that provides guidance on a range of interventions) that should be utilised in order to maximise crime prevention outcomes from this initiative.

If you wish to find out more about the Safer Streets Fund in your county, we recommend you make contact with the local DOCO, their contact details can be found HERE.

The updated Safer Streets Fund crime prevention toolkit can be accessed here - https://whatworks.college.police.uk/Research/Documents/Safer_Streets_toolkit.pdf  

Further details about applying to the Safer Streets Fund are available here - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safer-streets-fund-application-process