CRITr

In 2019 the Streetwatch scheme was launched by members of the community in the Milnrow and Newhey area of Rochdale, Greater Manchester. The scheme gives local residents who want to play a part in keeping their community safe, a chance to do so by organising patrols to walk around the area and reporting back on low level issues. The scheme led to the idea of setting up an app called Communities Resolving Issues Together (CRITr).

The aim of CRITr is to encourage and facilitate members of communities to be able to play an active part in tackling quality of life issues in their areas. The app is currently being developed by volunteers and is set to launch for a trial period in early January 2020. The Milnrow and Newhey Streetwatch members will use CRITr during the trial period with a view to rolling it out to more communities in the near future.

The app will allow users to join and create a profile. Members will then be able to drop a pin on a map to report low level non crime matters. A photograph of the issue can be added. Once the report is verified, members will be able to select from a number of activities and arrange a date and time for them to take place. Other members can sign up to joining the activity and the patrols can be tracked by GPS to show which areas have been covered. A gamification aspect will be added to the app which will award points to those who take part in activities and we hope that in the future that we will be able to convert these points into donations to charitable organisations. It will also be possible to view issues reported and browse the activities which have been arranged.