In Neupré, MR mayor Virginie Defrang-Firket has set up a simple, effective and replicable scheme to fight burglaries. The Local Prevention Partnership (LPP) system makes security everyone's business, without going to excess.
In a context where police staffing is sometimes insufficient to cover the entire territory at all times, Neupré has opted for an alternative and intelligent solution: involving citizens in burglary prevention. The system relies on a local network, organised around neighbourhood coordinators, chosen by the municipal college following a call for candidates, who act as the link between residents and the police.
The process is clear: when a citizen member of the LPP notices suspicious behaviour (an unknown car, a dubious salesperson, unusual movement), they report it to their coordinator. The coordinator checks the relevance of the information and passes it on to the local police. Once checks have been carried out, the police provide feedback, which is then shared with all network participants. This model relies on a two-way flow of information: citizens pass alerts up to the police, but the police can also, via the coordinator, issue targeted prevention messages (e.g. bogus roofers, burglaries through upstairs windows, fake police officers, etc.).
To take part, each participant signs a commitment charter that sets out everyone's role and prevents any slide towards informing on neighbours. The aim is clear: fighting burglaries, and only that, by fostering a climate of shared vigilance. It is not, for instance, about reporting misplaced bins or neighbourly disputes.
Through this system, Neupré puts two essential principles back at the heart of the approach: responsible citizen behaviour and the protective role of the police. Far from a purely repressive logic, the LPPs help restore a bond of trust between the police and the population, based on cooperation, listening and prevention.
The municipality currently has five citizen LPPs (one per village) and one LPP for self-employed workers (LPPI), which works on the same principle for shopkeepers.
Neupré's LPPs show that effective security also relies on collective intelligence, common sense and trust. This type of initiative fully reflects the values of local governance championed by the MR: efficiency, proximity and accountability.
The Local Elected Representatives Support Unit is relaunching the Good Local Ideas initiative. If you have implemented a concrete, replicable and useful project in your municipality, share it with other MR representatives!