Who are we?

This is the Prestbury Community Policing Forum website. We represent a community based in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Our suburbs include Boughton, Prestbury, Napierville, and Blackridge. Our local police station is the Prestbury Police Station located at Swartkop Road, Prestbury, Pietermaritzburg. 

We are a not-for-profit representative body of local residents, with an elected executive committee. Our mandate is conferred by the Constitution of South Africa, and his has been further supported by the South African Police Services (SAPS) Act 68 of 1995 that mandates all station commissioners to establish such forums at station level.

A Community Policing Forum is a platform where community members, organisation, local business, and other relevant stakeholders and the police meet to support local crime prevention initiatives.

Legal Framework

The establishment of Community Policing Forums was provided for in section 221(2) of the Constitution and section 19(1) of the South African Police Services (SAPS) Act 68 of 1995. The objectives of CPFs are clearly stated in section 18(1) of the SAPS Act.

” CPFs together with the police should establish and maintain a partnership with the community, promote communication between the police and the community, promote cooperation and ensure that the police fulfil the needs of the community in respect of policing, improve the service of the police to the community, improve transparency and accountability of the SAPS and promote joint problem identification and problem solving.” 

Representation  

The general principle, is that CPFs should be representative of the community in the area. However, this is not always that easy to achieve. Specifically, the CPF should comprise members from community based organisation, institutions, interest groups and the general public who are broadly representative of the community in the station area:

• community crime prevention associations; 
• private security companies; 
• business, including the local Business Against Crime and the Local Chamber of Commerce; 
• traditional leaders; 
• religious formations; 
• Non-Governmental Organisation; 
• organised labour institutions; 
• youth desk representatives
• the Station Commissioner ex officio; 
• members of the Police Service

Current Executive Members

•  Chairperson
•  Vice Chairman
• Treasurer
• Secretary
• Vice Secretary
• Public Relations Officer
• Additional Member
• Additional Member
• Additional Member