A person’s sense of community might sound like an abstract notion or something academics say which has no bearing on reality.

Sense of community belonging refers to the interaction that a person has with others in their community and the community as a whole.

The alliance’s plan might sound like it is clutching at straws but research has proved a person’s sense of community is directly related to their mental and physical health and as a result it is related to their behaviour. 

The area is troubled.

A lot of trouble comes from children who wander the streets at night, burning things, throwing rocks at cars and generally getting up to mischief. 

The community calls on the court system to punish the children.

The community calls on the court system to punish the parents. 

These options never address the cause of the problem and punishment in these situations rarely stops the behaviour in the long term. 

So let’s give the community alliance’s plan a go.

Research has shown that if a person has a high sense of community, a strong sense of belonging then their mental health is improved.

An improved mental health can lead to improved physical health.

The reason for this is people feel comfortable with others, comfortable enough to ask for help. 

Isn’t it better to have struggling families come to their neighbours, their friends, for help rather than opening another bottle of alcohol and allowing the children to wander the streets unsupervised?

Isn’t it better for them to have someone to talk to rather than self medicating?

Increasing the sense of community in a neighbourhood like Glenroi will be hard, probably impossible but at least someone is trying. 

It is comforting to know there are still people out there who have a passion for change.