Case study: GreenWORKS!

The Victorian Government’s goal is to prevent crime and keep communities safe by addressing the root causes of offending.

A joined-up approach to support people and communities in need

Collaboration across government, key organisations and with communities is the best way to provide individuals with the right supports to address the risk factors for offending and strengthen social recovery outcomes.

Working with the community across three action areas

The Strategy will support effective, collaborative efforts to improve outcomes for individuals and communities in Victoria across three interconnected action areas.

Measuring the impact of our efforts to prevent crime

We will monitor and evaluate our progress in addressing risk factors for offending across the Victorian Government.

Action Area 1: Empower and invest in communities to implement local solutions

Empower and invest in communities to implement local solutions.

Action Area 2: Enhance and connect support for people in need

Enhance and connect support for people and communities in need.

Action Area 3: Evidence and impact for effective and innovative approaches

Evidence and impact for effective and innovative approaches.

How the Strategy was developed

The Crime Prevention Strategy has been developed through a whole-of-community and government effort.

Case study: GreenWORKS!

Using art, design and landscaping to engage, educate and mentor young people and prevent graffiti

Fast facts

Project name: GreenWORKS! Green Pathways project
Organisation: City of Maribyrnong
Grant fund: Graffiti Prevention Grants
Grant amount: : $25,000
Total project cost: $57,416
Project Partners: RecWest Braybrook, Caroline Chisholm Catholic College, Victoria Police Footscray, street mural artists (Mayfield Palace, Bryan Itch and Stiff Ives), YMCA Disability Group, Big Fish, Green Army volunteers, and local traders and residents.

The project

A Maribyrnong public mural and graffiti education project has showcased vocational pathways in landscaping and urban design to VCAL students from Caroline Chisholm Catholic College as they created an ‘artscape’ to deter unsightly graffiti.

A prominent wall at Braybrook’s RecWest centre was frequently being tagged, producing negative perceptions of safety in the area. In response, the GreenWORKS! project used the student’s ideas to cover the wall with Maribyrnong’s largest public mural, featuring 3D designs and landscaping.

Professional mural artists supported the students to develop creative skills and design the mural. The students also visited Victoria Police Footscray and undertook school-based education to discuss the negative consequences of graffiti vandalism and how it differs from legal art.

Over six months, the students worked with the artists, park rangers and landscape designers to research the mural themes and develop the artscape. Other students and young Green Army volunteers joined the tree planting, creating new connections as they learned design, problem‑solving and cooperation skills.

Achievements

Since the mural’s completion, tagging on the wall has stopped and graffiti has not been seen in a nearby shopping strip that was repainted recently.

The community has embraced the mural design, which is also attracting new visitors. Residents were kept informed during the project and have been impressed by the young people’s work to make the area feel more safe and inviting.

The relationship between the council and the school is continuing and community relationships have formed, with neighbours monitoring the site to report any illegal activity and YMCA Disability Group volunteers maintaining the plantings.

The students took ownership of the mural through the design process and spoke proudly at the community launch to share their achievements. Post-project surveys found improved relationships between the project participants, residents and the young people, and an increased sense of community belonging and confidence in the students.

Lessons

The young people were especially motivated and engaged by designing and physically producing the mural, visiting Victoria Police, building rapport with their mentors and the community and having the site nearby so they could see the results. The project also learned the importance of allowing budget for anti-graffiti coating and contingencies, and enough time for recruiting the young participants and working around bad weather and exam and holiday periods.

City of Maribyrnong found that establishing a project reference group to support cooperation between the project partners and its relevant departments led to better collaboration opportunities and links with green space development and master planning in the municipality.