Sector Policing

What is Sector Policing?

Sector policing is an approach to policing whereby the service area of a police station is divided into smaller, manageable areas known as sectors. For each sector, the SAPS appoints a police official who is known as the sector commander.

The community and its sector commander are active partners in ensuring local safety and security.

The sector commander involves all role-players in

• identifying the policing needs in the sector; and
• dealing with the root causes of crime and factors that contribute to crime.

The goal is to bring about effective crime prevention by launching intelligence-driven crime-prevention projects in partnership with the local community.

Advantages of Sector Policing

Sector Policing

• is a practical form of community policing as it involves policing smaller, more manageable areas;
• ensures more effective crime prevention, because attention is given to the causes of crime and the factors and circumstances that allow crime to take place in a sector;
• contributes to community involvement, which leads to sound partnerships between the police and the community;
• encourages and enables communities to take greater responsibility for their own safety and security;
• improves the relationship between the police and the community, which increases the community’s trust in, respect for and understanding of the police, reduces the fear of crime and improves service delivery by the police; and
• is policing at its most basic.

What is the Role of the Community?

• Community members must attend SCF meetings to discuss action plans with the sector commander in order to deal with crime in the sector;
• launch and participate in neighbourhood initiatives to safeguard the community;
• provide information and inputs to prevent crime in the sector;
• actively support sector policing by volunteering as reservists in the sectors;
• get involved by contacting the sector commander and secure the neighbourhood ; local businesses, councillors, resident associations and community leaders are called upon to participate in all efforts to deal with factors that contribute to crime in the sector.