What is a WHO Safe Community?

Safe Communities is a World Health Organisation (WHO) concept that recognises safety as "a universal concern and a responsibility for all." This approach to safety promotion and injury prevention encourages greater cooperation and collaboration between non-government organisations, the business sector, central and local government agencies, and creatively mobilises local community members to action. The WHO Safe Communities model creates an infrastructure in local communities for addressing injury prevention initiatives through the building of local partnerships. It is a programme that was initiated in Sweden by the WHO Collaborating Centre on Community Safety Promotion at the Karolinska Institute for Social Medicine (www.phs.ki.se/csp). The Safe Communities Foundation New Zealand (SCFNZ) has been established to work collaboratively with other key stakeholders to further support the development of injury prevention and safety promotion. It will provide and opportunity for all relevant stakeholders to increase action on injury prevention and safety promotion. This factsheet provides further information under the following headings; 1) Criteria: WHO Safe Community, 2) Process: WHO Safe Community, and 3) Advantages of WHO accreditation from a local government perspective.