Deputy Chief Constable for Devon and Cornwall, Paul Netherton, the strategic lead for this project, says, “Faith and Police Together is a multi-faith initiative designed to galvanise the support of faith groups to support the police and to help address problems and challenges within our communities. Often faith groups have a high motivation to help within our society but sometimes don’t know how they can help, or even how they could talk to the police to find out what the problems are or how they can assist. My experience of working with faith groups and churches is that once you start the conversations you unlock massive social capital that can transform an area or make a real difference to a problem. This could be Street Angels patrolling the night time economy, drop in centres for young people or cafes where the homeless or lonely can find support. The benefit for the police and all the public sector is significant in terms of reducing demand and finding long term solutions. This is a great initiative and is welcomed by the police. It can lead to transformational change in some of the most challenging social issues across the country”.
