BARCC wins Alberta Community Justice Award
Crime Coalition Wins Alberta Community Justice Award
Barrhead & Area Regional Crime Coalition is honored to receive the Community Justice Award in the Community Mobilization Category. "This award reflects the success of the partnership between the County of Barrhead, Town of Barrhead, Woodlands County, Barrhead RCMP Detachment and Barrhead & District Rural Crime Watch and our commitment to work together to make our community a safer place,” said Doug Drozd, Reeve for County of Barrhead.
"Continued collaboration between municipalities, partner groups, and RCMP has proven to be successful and creates additional resources for our residents. Building safer communities by encouraging residents to be involved in crime prevention is a positive outcome for everyone. Woodlands County is proud to partner in this innovative resource and is excited for its continued growth,” stated Dale McQueen, Councillor for Woodlands County.
The Barrhead and Area Regional Crime Coalition (BARCC) is a partnership between County of Barrhead, Town of Barrhead, Woodlands County, Barrhead RCMP and Barrhead & District Rural Crime Watch. Established in 2017, the purpose of the regional partnership is to reduce crime through coordinated efforts, increase crime prevention awareness, and encourage reporting of suspicious activities.
The coalition is a first not only for Alberta but also across Canada. It uses technology to address crime in areas with limited enforcement services. BARCC Connect is a free, voluntary program that sends alerts directly to residents through phone, text or email; these alerts focus on real-time information, leverage the eyes and ears of the community to address crime, and share information on municipal developments and local events. To date, the system has 2,185 registered users that receive accurate information from a credible source regarding crime, emergencies, municipal information, news and events.
Mayor for the Town of Barrhead, Dave McKenzie stated, "We are honoured to have been recognized by the province, once again, for our efforts in working with our public to keep our community safe.” In addition to the Alberta Community Justice Award, BARCC has also been an award recipient of the AUMA Sustainability in Collaboration (2020) and the Minister’s Award for Municipal Excellence - Outstanding Achievement (2019).
Through the use of BARCC-Connect, the coalition has demonstrated success through public empowerment and inter-organizational collaboration to remove jurisdictional boundaries. This leads to better relationships between police and the community they serve. As a result of BARCC’s success, several other municipalities and regions are exploring or implementing similar options.
Visit www.barcc.ca to register for BARCC Connect and view further initiatives and successes of this coalition.
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Contact:
County of Barrhead, Economic Development & Communications Coordinator, 780-674-3331
Town of Barrhead, Communications Coordinator, 780-674-3301
Woodlands County, Communications Coordinator, 780-778-8400