The Causeway Coast and Glens Community Safety Partnership (PCSP) and the PSNI have announced the launch of a new Neighbourhood Watch scheme in the Hamilton Place and Hamilton Place Lane area of Portrush.

The new scheme, a partnership between local communities, the PSNI, and the PCSP, is designed to promote safety, reduce crime, and enhance the quality of life in neighbourhoods. Chairperson of the PCSP, Cllr Darryl Wilson, said the new scheme will help ensure that while Portrush welcomes guests for the Open golf tournament, it also keeps local areas feeling safe and secure.

Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator Una Lynch commented that the scheme is another step forward in building stronger community connections. "It only took us three years to put the idea into action!" she said, noting that the community was very enthusiastic about the idea of protecting their "lovely, settled neighbourhood." Lynch also thanked the Portrush Pentecostal church for providing a venue for a meeting with police and council representatives, which helped the process.

Neighbourhood Policing Officer Constable Bruce Campbell said: "It is fantastic to see the development of this new scheme in Portrush. Neighbourhood Watch is about communities and policing working actively together to promoting safety and well-being and making sure that no one must feel afraid, vulnerable or isolated in the place where they live."

A recent report by the Northern Ireland Policing Board, PSNI, and Department of Justice found that 86% of people who live in a Neighbourhood Watch area feel very or quite safe.

The Causeway Coast and Glens PCSP welcomes anyone interested in setting up a scheme to contact them.