Safer Suburbs Awards

Safer Suburbs Awards 2023

The 2023 Safer suburbs Awards ceremony was held in October and celebrated 32 nominees.

Category winners

Individual

Michelle Beattie, Hearts of Purple founder
Hearts of Purple provides essential resources for those impacted by domestic and family violence. Ms Beattie also works to raise awareness of the signs of abuse and available support.

Project or initiative

Chill Out Zone, Gold Coast Youth Service
The initiative operates in the Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach safe night precincts to provide direct welfare and support vulnerable people to get home safely.

Community group

Multicultural Families Organisation
This group helps improve safety and encourages inclusion. Its programs, including Leaders for Positive Change, Friend’s Friend Network and the SARA program, support culturally and linguistically diverse women impacted by domestic and family violence.

Meritorious Award recipients

Brett and Belinda Beasley and the Jack Beasley Foundation
Dedicated to reducing knife crime, their efforts include advocating for legislation to allow police to carry metal detection wands. They also offer awareness programs for schools, sporting clubs and community organisations.

Everything Suarve Inc
Through their Big Brother programs, Everything Suarve Inc provides a foundation for our most vulnerable and at-risk young people to pursue qualifications and increase their employment outcomes. The program aims to improve the lives of our most disadvantaged youth.

Creating safer suburbs

Keeping our city safe is everyone's responsibility. By working together we are building a safer, more connected and cohesive community. Let's all become safety ambassadors by educating our children protecting vulnerable people building local awareness reporting anything we may feel is crime related.

The next Safer Suburbs Awards program will be held in 2025.

Previous Safer Suburbs Awards winners

Not-for-profit

Year Awardee Achievements
2021 TMC Thriving Multicultural Communities
  • Established a health and wellbeing check-in initiative to support the community through the impacts of social isolation caused by COVID 19.
  • Residents provided with essential emotional support to build resilience including through translated resources.
2019 RizeUp Australia
  • Practical and positive support for families experiencing domestic and family violence.
  • Support includes providing items to create a comfortable new home for families, school essentials and experience days to enjoy.
2017 Gold Coast Community Legal Centre
  • Free legal advice provided to those in need.
  • Without this assistance, many would struggle to pay for legal advice, or the matter may go unresolved.
2015 Southern Gold Coast 60 & Better Program
  • The organisation's motto, 'Keeping Active and Staying Connected', informs its core vision and objective of identifying and developing ways to help seniors improve their quality of life, including community safety.
2013 Burleigh Heads Police Community Consultative Committee (CCC)
  • Contributes positively to many collaborative initiatives between the Queensland Police Service and local community.
  • Highly valuable in bonding the community, police and local groups, and undertaking meaningful crime reduction activities.
2011 Broadbeach Alliance Limited
  • Works strategically and in conjunction with lead agencies and stakeholders to ensure safety and security in the Broadbeach precinct is always at the highest possible standard.

Individual

Year Awardee Achievements
2021 Kareem Baba
  • Assists vulnerable people through weekly volunteering efforts with the Multicultural Social Network.
  • Kareem distributes meals twice a week to people experiencing homelessness and to victims of domestic and family violence.
2019 Kathleen Vlasic
  • Coordinator of Rosies drop-in centre at Southport.
  • Kathleen supports vulnerable residents by arranging everything from food donations and meals to haircuts and coordinates outreach support.
2017 Acting Sergeant Tracey Clouston
  • Tracey worked with Police Citizens Youth Clubs to create a homeless youth crisis centre network and obtained a grant to provide free fitness classes for young people.
2015 Roberta Cava
  • Driving force to establish the Crime Stoppers Northern Gold Coast Volunteer Area Committee.
  • Roberta shares important safety messaging with the community via social media, newsletters, and email updates.
2013 Jean Greatbanks
  • Volunteers with the Gold Coast Volunteers In Policing (VIP) and the Runaway Bay 3 Neighbourhood Watch group.
  • Jean is instrumental in leading projects to improve community safety including introducing the Homelink program.
2011 Catherine Booth
  • Outstanding commitment to the City’s graffiti prevention initiatives including, ArtBox.
  • Catherine has volunteered over 280 hours to paint traffic signal boxes and other assets across the city.

Business

Year Awardee Achievements
2021 Virtue Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
  • Offers free community safety workshops to provide strategies to combat the effects of bullying, support mental health and wellbeing.
  • Provides skills to increase confidence in a supportive atmosphere.
2019 Halcyon
  • Instrumental in the creation of a new bridging accommodation facility in the northern Gold Coast area for families affected by domestic and family violence.
2017 Men of Business (MOB)
  • Supported around 1000 ‘at risk’ young men through a mentoring program where participants learn trust, communication, anger management, and how to deal with emotions on their journey to adulthood.
2015 Cross Cultural Liaison Unit, Gold Coast Police District
  • Established in 2014 to enhance safety awareness for the multicultural community.
  • Provides safety information sessions to international students and builds relationships between police and young refugees through sporting activities.
2013 Gold Coast Suns
  • The Horizons Program focuses on social responsibility and involves a range of projects and activities that enhance community safety.
  • Youth homelessness, domestic violence awareness, and the rapidly expanding northern region of the city are key priorities.
2011 @wecare Child Care
  • Supports local crime prevention initiatives by educating children under school age about safety issues including road safety skills, protective behaviours and selfcare.

Project

Year Awardee Achievements
2021 Youth Justice Co-Responder Program
  • Joint initiative between Youth Justice and Queensland Police Service to proactively engage youth at risk of offending.
  • Program aims to divert young people from further engagement with the criminal justice system.
2019 First Drinks: First Impressions
  • Initiative of the Queensland Police Service, the project is conducted in the Surfers Paradise entertainment precinct and has contributed to a reduction in assault rates and fewer victims of crime.
2017 SAVE 2017
  • Education program for senior students to learn about safety on the road, at the beach and during natural disasters.
2015 Cyber Crime & Fraud Forum, Gold Coast District Neighbourhood Watch
  • Initiative of the Gold Coast District Neighbourhood Watch to educate seniors on evolving technology to enhance personal security.
2013 Helping Youth At Risk (HYAR)
  • Early intervention program run by the Ashmore PCYC to re-engage young people in school while feeling capable, responsible and motivated.
2011 Skate Park Watch – Elanora Skate Bowl
  • Improving community safety at the Elanora Skate Bowl by providing a mechanism for fast response to graffiti and vandalism and reducing the incidence of anti-social behaviour.

Meritorious Award

Year Awardee Achievements
2021 YHES House
  • A youth-friendly space to assist vulnerable young people to feel welcomed, listened to and respected.
  • The organisation builds positive relationships and connects with young people to ensure they remain engaged with services and to help young people to reach their goals.
2019 Street C.R.E.D.
  • Street C.R.E.D. (collaborate, re-engage, empower and deter) led by the Queensland Police Service in collaboration with government and non-government services, builds positive relationships with young people who may be experiencing homelessness or engaging in antisocial behaviour.
  • Program connects young people with services that provide health and wellbeing support and assists them to re-engage in education or employment pathways.
2017 Mr Allan Howard
  • Mr Howard was awarded for his outstanding commitment and dedication to the Neighbourhood Watch program.
  • He promoted important safety messages through initiatives including Fraud and Cyber Crime Forums, Disaster Survival Forum, Youth Justice conferences and the City’s Volunteer Graffiti Removal Program.
2015 Let's Support You Support Your Community – Domestic Violence Awareness Training
  • A Queensland Police Service initiative in collaboration with culturally and linguistically diverse community leaders to develop and deliver domestic violence awareness training for their respective communities.
2013 Surfers Paradise Anglican Crisis Care
  • Through the Drop In Centre, 524,772 free meals have been served to vulnerable, disadvantaged and homeless clients.
  • Food vouchers, groceries, bus fares, clothing and blankets, showers, toilets and laundry facilities have also been provided.
2011 Runaway Bay 3 Neighbourhood Watch
  • Established since 1992, the organisation provides a range of holistic and partnership initiatives to build better relationships with agencies and the people who work and live within the area including ways to improve community safety.

Other categories

Year Awardee Achievements
2009 Early bird prizes Nominations received early went into a draw for one of three $50 Harvey Norman vouchers. The lucky winners were:
  • Crime Stoppers South East Qld Region
  • Transformation Ministries
  • Phil and Doreen Barnes
2007 Early bird prizes Nominations received early went into a draw for one of five $50 Harvey Norman vouchers. The lucky winners were:
  • Broadbeach Marketing
  • Yatala Neighbourhood Watch
  • Melba's on the Park
  • Bravehearts
  • Churches of Christ Care
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