Community Input
Connecting with the community is very important to us, whether we're looking for formal data to drive our strategic planning or discussing how to make Surrey safer for you.
Listening to the community
Connecting with our community through active listening, empathy, and compassion is at the forefront of our community policing model. Our goal as a police service is to put the community first in all that we do by building truly authentic and trusting relationships between Surrey Police Service (SPS) and the diverse communities we serve. Since its inception, SPS has made community engagement a cornerstone of our service, and our officers make a daily commitment to engage and build trust with the community.
We’d like to meet you
If you’re hosting a community event, or would like to connect with our officers, please reach out to us. We’d love to get to know you and be present at your event. For more information, please message CommunityEvents@surreypolice.ca.
Community consultations
In November 2024, SPS concluded its second comprehensive community consultation to help drive the important community priorities for police of jurisdiction. The formal consultation had three components: a community survey of residents, interviews, and focus groups with key community stakeholders.
Several key themes emerged from the consultations, including:
- Police Visibility – SPS should be highly visible and accessible in the community order to create a sense of safety and to build trust in SPS.
- Community Engagement – Officers need to be connected and responsive to the community to build relationships and help residents understand current issues and police response.
- Crime and Social Issues – Issues pertaining to housing, vulnerable populations, and gangs need to be addressed as they have significant negative impacts to feelings of safety.
- Addressing Perceptions of Safety – Provide information to the public and work to promote the positive happenings in the community, in addition to sharing crime issues and trends.
- Early Intervention and Prevention – Strong support for school liaison officers who can support prevention and intervention efforts with youth. It was noted that this type of police-school involvement must be managed carefully and involve the right type of officers.
- Officer Training and Accountability – Trauma-informed practice and cultural training are critical components of officer training. Accountability systems must be in place, and the civilian police board must be made up of the right people. Strong support for body-worn cameras.
- Timely Response and Localized Delivery – SPS must have the appropriate level of resources to deliver policing services and timely call response, and to deploy officers at the neighbourhood level.
The 2024 community consultation was conducted for SPS by Curt T. Griffiths, Ph.D., Simon Fraser University, Stephanie Dawson, Ph.D., Dawson Analytics, and Eli L. Sopow, Ph.D., University Canada West.
