On this page
- Current community safety plan and priorities
- Addressing serious violence
- Violence against women and girls
- Knife enabled crime
- Young people at risk
- Drug related harm
- Complex needs
Current Community Safety Plan and priorities
The Community Safety Plan 2025–2028 sets out how Portsmouth will reduce crime, anti‑social behaviour, and harm over the next three years.
The plan is based on local data and what people in the community say matters most. The goal is to make Portsmouth a safer and more welcoming place for everyone.
We will do this by:
- acting early to stop problems before they grow
- working closely with local organisations and services
- giving extra help to people most at risk
Our four main priorities are:
- Tackling violent crime – stopping violence, especially against women and girls. This includes domestic abuse, sexual violence and knife crime.
- Reducing harm from drugs – helping people get treatment, stopping exploitation, and preventing drug‑related crime.
- Supporting young people – finding and helping children and young people who may be at risk of exploitation, drug use, or crime.
- Helping people with complex needs – working together to tackle the root causes, and giving joined‑up, person‑centred support.
Addressing serious violence
By law (the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022), organisations must work together to prevent and reduce serious violence.
The Safer Portsmouth Partnership (SPP) is taking a joined‑up approach that focuses on prevention, early action and support. This means sharing information, working closely to stop violence before it starts, stepping in early when problems arise, and helping people who are affected.
A big part of this work is:
- tackling violence against women and girls
- addressing knife crime
- supporting young people at risk
Members of the SPP also work with partners across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight as part of the Strategic Violence Reduction Partnership (SVRP).
Violence against women and girls
In 2024, Portsmouth launched its first Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy. The plan aims to stop harm before it happens, make sure services work well together, and put the needs of victims first.
It also aims to:
- challenge harmful attitudes
- promote fairness and inclusion
- hold people to account
- use lived experience and evidence to guide what we do
The work focuses on four areas:
- tackling domestic abuse
- early help with the right messages and support
- making the city feel safe for everyone
- helping organisations make lasting changes
Knife-enabled crime
Knife crime in Portsmouth has gone up slightly, and more people have been caught with weapons. This may be due to better police recording and action, not just more incidents.
Many people are still worried about knife crime, but the number of people directly affected has not changed much. A small but growing number of young people are carrying knives. Some do this because they are scared, feel pressure from others, or think it will keep them safe.
To tackle this, local organisations are:
- stepping in early and supporting young people at risk
- improving education about the dangers of carrying knives
- challenging harmful myths with clear, targeted messages
- working closely with youth services and the wider community to help young people make safer choices
Young people at risk
We know that when young people are vulnerable, it is often linked to bigger issues in their lives.
Our plan focuses on:
- spotting the signs early
- offering support to those at risk of exploitation, drug use, or crime
- working closely with schools, youth services, and families
- increasing access to positive activities and mentoring
Research shows that fear‑based messages (just talking about danger) can make things worse, for example by making a young person feel they need to carry a weapon. Instead, we focus on trusted relationships and approaches that are proven to work.
Young Futures - a new approach to early intervention
To help stop problems before they start, Portsmouth is launching a pilot called the Young Futures panel, running October 2025 to March 2026. It will support children aged 10 to 17 who may be at risk of getting involved in crime. The aim is to connect them with positive activities and introduce them to role models who can offer guidance, support, and encouragement to make safer choices.
How we address exploitation of children in our communities
- Missing, Exploited and Trafficked (MET) Children Meeting A regular meeting to identify and support individual children who are at risk of, or experiencing, exploitation (criminal, sexual, or trafficking). The group plans the right support and safeguarding for each child.
- 4‑weekly Community TCG (Tactical Coordination Group) A broader meeting every four weeks to look at places and spaces of concern (ASB, crime hotspots, or areas where young people may be at risk). The group agrees joint actions to make these areas safer, using a contextual safeguarding approach.
- Young Adults Safeguarding Panel A meeting every six weeks for young people moving into adulthood, including those with care experience or a history of exploitation. Professionals work together to give a compassionate, coordinated, trauma‑informed response at a critical time in their lives.
Drug-related harm
Portsmouth’s Combating Drugs Partnership brings together local organisations to reduce the harm caused by drugs and alcohol.
The focus is to:
- help people get the treatment and support they need
- support recovery
- stop young people from getting involved with drugs
- disrupt drug supply
- support people with complex needs
- make sure services are joined up and working well together
There is a detailed plan in place until 2026, based on local need and national priorities.
Current priorities
- Disrupt local drug supply chains and drug‑related crime
- Improve the quality, capacity and outcomes of drug and alcohol prevention and treatment services
- Reduce the misuse and harm caused to young people by drugs and alcohol
For more information on the Portsmouth Combating Drugs Partnership please email publichealth@portsmouthcc.gov.uk
Complex needs
Some people face several challenges at the same time. This can include homelessness, drug or alcohol problems, poor mental health, or being involved in crime.
These overlapping issues can make it hard to get the right help. Services are often set up to deal with just one problem at a time, so people with complex needs can miss out.
To change this, local services (health, housing, police and support organisations) are working more closely together to offer joined‑up, person‑focused care.
We have already looked at the barriers people face and are using what we learned to shape a better approach. After reviewing homeless day services, wider work is now happening through Portsmouth’s Health and Wellbeing Board to improve support for adults facing multiple challenges.
This includes:
- identifying the most vulnerable people
- learning from what works elsewhere
- designing services that meet all of someone’s needs, not just one at a time
Watch Craig's story around Complex Needs animation
Watch time: 4 mins