working with the local farming community

Post Covid 19 pandemic, the North Antrim farming industry was at the forefront of a wave of crime which affected a wide area from Ballycastle and the Glens in the East to the Bushmills / Coleraine area in the West. High value farm equipment was stolen on a regular basis, with little or no hope for prosecutions or recovery of stolen items.  Farmers were left dealing with the loss of important pieces of equipment, high capital costs for replacements, paperwork through insurance claims which were often rejected and concerned families with young children upset by criminal acts on the family farm.

The Community Association was approached for help by several farmers from the area and following discussions, a Steering Committee was established to oversee a new approach in dealing with these incidents of crime. With high level PSNI involvement, the then North Antrim MP Ian Paisley, members from the farming community and concerned local residents, a project plan was established to bring much closer involvement when dealing with crime and crime prevention between the PSNI and the farming community. 

New, two way communication networks were established, new methods of identifying and reporting incidents of potential crime and criminal acts were put in place, regular review meetings were scheduled and eventually the project coverage extended to all of the North Antrim farming area.  Substantial funding has been provided for the project by the Police Property Fund ( NI).

The project has been operating now for the past 18 months and with each month it becomes more embedded into farming life and the relationship and understanding between the farming community and the PSNI has developed to a higher level than anything previous.

Farm Alert has grown and developed with experience over time and is ever evolving and hopefully it remains a key part of crime prevention and crime resolution within our area for many more years.

All of this contributes to a higher level of security for the area’s farmers and also brings comfort to other local resident who know that they are not alone when they get concerned about criminals who may chose to operate within the area.