Community Safety Partnership

Violence Multi Agency Group (VMAG)

The role of the Violence Multi Agency Group is to co-ordinate activities in relation to violence and community safety in South Ayrshire.

The Group is chaired by Inspector Bob Smith, Strathclyde Police and has Eibhlin Corrigan, Principal Anti Social Behaviour/ CSP Co-ordinator and Chris Campbell Community Safety Projects Officer as support officers to the group. Suzanne Bishop, Community Safety Officer specialising in Domestic Abuse also supports the group.

The following outcome targets were included in the South Ayrshire Community Safety 3 Year Strategy 2005 - 2008 and form the aims of the Violence Sub-Group

Less violence in communities
Increased community confidence in partner agencies' response to reported incidents of violence
People feel safer in their communities

Membership of the group comprises representatives from:

South Ayrshire Council (Community Safety Team, Antisocial Behaviour Team, Community Support Officer Team, Education)
NHS Ayrshire & Arran
Strathclyde Police
Victim Support
Women's Aid
Procurator Fiscal
SAMS (South Ayrshire Monitoring Station)
Carrick Crime Prevention Panel
Kyle Crime Prevention Panel
Scottish Ambulance Service
Ayrshire Council on Alcohol
Community Regeneration Partnership members (formerly SIP)

In parallel with the other two multi-agency sub-groups, the Violence group has adopted a 'problem solving' approach. Working with a wide range of partners, the first stage has been to gather evidence to define what the 'hot spot' or 'problem' is.

The VMAS group is now responsible for domestic abuse issues (previously covered through the specific domestic abuse priority) and intend to continue supporting a range of projects (including the Additional Security Project) around this, working closely with the Multi Agency Partnership on Domestic Abuse.

However, the group has also been looking more generally at problems around violence and analysing the available data. As a result of this, a group focussing on problems and issues in Ayr Town Centre has been set up, called SafeAyr. This group develops partnership projects to tackle violence in this particular area.

These are the initial projects for the VMAS, but over the three-year period we will continue to monitor the data and to focus on new areas and issues, which are identified.

Overall the group will continue carrying out the information gathering, implement projects and be adaptable to any new projects or initiatives where appropriate under the Community Safety Partnership 3 Year Plan 2005 - 2008.