MORE ABOUT COMMUNITY CHAMPIONS

WHAT QUALITIES DO I NEED TO BECOME A COMMUNITY CHAMPION?

Do you care about your neighbourhood?
Can you work objectively with local residents and local agencies?
Are you prepared to undertake some training?
Can you give some spare time every week to volunteer?
Can you respect a confidence?
Are you willing to work within a set of established guidelines?
If you answered yes to the above questions, it is likely you would make a good Community Champion.

WHAT WOULD I BE EXPECTED TO DO?

Work as part of a team with other Community Champions.
Liaise with local agencies such as the Local Authority on behalf of local residents.
Identify local issues and network with the relevant agencies.
Hold or attend local meetings or surgeries as appropriate.
Mentor members of the public, by attending agency appointments with them.
Accompany a witness to court if they are giving evidence in an antisocial behaviour trial.
Do some office based work, such as writing up action plans and answering the telephone.
Learn about the role of statutory and local agencies and the services they offer.
This list is not exhaustive, and you may not have to do everything on it, it is just an example of the services we offer.

What is the Community Champion Scheme?

Community Champion Scheme

We are encouraging communities to help in the fight against antisocial behaviour by running a Community Champion scheme, Community Champions are members of the public who will work within their neighbourhoods, liaising with local agencies by raising awareness of local issues on behalf of other residents.

Neighbourhoods have changed over the last few decades. The community spirit can be lacking for many reasons. Communities need to be empowered to regain respect for people and places.
One way CABOT have identified, which may help, is the promotion of Community Champions, these could be groups or individuals who would liaise between Agencies such as the Police and Local Authority and the neighbourhood. This would lessen fear of reporting crime and also build bridges between agencies and the public, as CABOT have discovered, many members of a community feel happier talking to a peer, rather than a faceless authority figure.

The Role of a Community Champion
a) To liaise between agencies and the public in a broad range of situations.
b) To mentor members of the public in areas such as reporting crime and throughout the process. For example, CC’s could be utilised to put forward the wishes of a victim in a restorative justice setting.
c) To assist agencies in the promotion of new initiatives and be part of the “Think Tank” process in the developmental stages.
d) To help promote community meetings and aid in the facilitation of participation, especially in historic hard to reach groups.
e) To network with and refer clients to existing groups such as Neighbourhood Watch, Victim Support and other agencies.
f) To meet regularly with other Community Champions to discuss “what works” and share best practice.
g) To be actively involved in meeting officers from agencies, and keeping abreast of new policies and practices which affect the public.
I) To operate under the Respect ethos.

WHO ARE CABOT?

Challenging Antisocial Behaviour Together (CABOT) are a Bristol (UK) group dedicated to helping those suffering from antisocial behaviour. We have realised that a whole range of issues affect people within their local community and try to offer a holistic service to give our clients the best possible service. We look at best practice from other areas and are often used as a benchmark for other agencies and groups.