What is Scaling Safety?
Scaling Safety aims to save lives, heal neighborhoods, and lay the foundation for a new approach to public safety that can prevent recurring crises from becoming crime.
Through technical know-how, flexible financial support to strengthen organizations, and deep municipal advocacy to unlock public dollars, Scaling Safety will expand a range of “resident-powered prevention programs” that train residents to act as conflict mediators, peer counselors, victim advocates, and more. Scaling Safety is a complement and an accelerator to promising interventions already happening at the grassroots level.
By equipping organizations and leaders with resources and skills to grow their impact, we will help build a nationwide blueprint for a new, inclusive approach to safety.
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What is Community Violence Intervention (CVI)?
Community violence intervention (CVI) is a phrase that describes a range of community outreach programs focused on intervening with people who are vulnerable to shooting or getting shot to prevent violence. CVI programs primarily focus on gun violence in communities with concentrated cycles of violence.
Violence Interrupters or Street Outreach Programs hire and train workers who actively work to mediate conflicts and prevent retaliatory violence between those at risk of committing or becoming the victims of violence. These workers are often more times than not directly linked to the communities they serve.
Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Programs (HVIPs) are typically located in trauma centers and emergency departments. They engage patients while in the hospital to reduce the chance of retaliation, violent injury recurrence, and individuals who do not typically receive services.
Examples of Community Violence Intervention Programs
How Community Violence Intervention Programs Make Communities Safer
The study found those neighborhoods saw lower rates of homicides committed with a gun compared to similar neighborhoods in Charlotte ( The study found those neighborhoods saw lower rates of homicides committed with a gun compared to similar neighborhoods in Charlotte, 2023). Read HERE.
A multi-city report says that the CVI program was associated with reductions in homicides in 8 of the 11 sites studied, with statistically significant reductions in four sites ( Estimating the Effects of Safe Streets Baltimore on Gun Violence, 2023). Read HERE.
A multi-city study says a 30 to 60 percent reduction in gun homicides (Healing Communities in crisis, 2016). Read HERE.
Cities such as Baltimore, New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago see a 30 percent reduction in shootings and killings (The Evidence of Effectiveness, 2021). Read HERE.
CVI strategies need a grasp of successful elements and ways to mitigate challenges to reduce the violence they desire (Implementing Outreach-Based Community Violence Intervention Programs, 2022). Read HERE.
Oakland, California, has cut its annual shootings and homicides nearly in half since 2012 ( A Case in Hope, 2019). Read HERE.
South Baltimore in Cherry Hill saw a 56% reduction in homicides and a 34% reduction in nonfatal shootings ( Cure Violence: A Public Health Model to Reduce Gun Violence, 2015). Read HERE.
What is Mental Health Crisis Response?
Mental health crisis intervention teams are affordable, safe, and effective ways of responding quickly to people experiencing unaddressed health issues without requiring law enforcement response. Crisis teams allow medical and health responders to replace law enforcement in reacting to situations involving individuals with a mental health challenge and refer the individual to adequate treatment.
Examples of Mental Health Crisis Response Programs
How Mental Health Crisis Response Programs Make Communities Safer
Approximately 14.2 million adults live with a serious mental illness. In 2020, only 64.5% of
those people received treatment ( Mental Health Alternative First Response: Community Map, 2023). Read MORE.
In 2017, the Crisis Assisting Helping Out on the Streets (CAHOOTS) teams answered 17% of the Eugene Police Department’s overall call volume. The program saves the city of Eugene an estimated $8.5 million in public safety spending annually. ( CAHOOTS & Police Departments, 2020). Read MORE.
Historically, as many as 7–10% of US police contacts have involved persons with mental illnesses, with a disproportionate amount of these encounters resulting in arrests, usually for minor offenses ( Crisis Intervention Teams may prevent arrests of people with mental illnesses, 2010). Read MORE.
According to a national survey, in the face of “severe budget constraints,” most voters (52% to 40%) prefer that their governments “hire additional healthcare experts to create or expand a mobile crisis response unit” than “hire additional police officers”( Voters Strongly Support Mobile Crisis Response Despite Opposition Messages, 2022). Read MORE.
Between January 1st, 2022, and July 1st, 2022, The Support Team Assisted Response (STAR) of Denver, Colorado, has responded to 2,837 calls for service (Support Team Assisted Response Mid-year Report, 2022). Read MORE.
Federal, state, and local mental health authorities are increasingly investing in the crisis care continuum, including call centers, mobile crisis teams, and crisis care facilities. Increased federal appropriations to states, including via an additional Mental Health Block Grant set-aside, are urgently needed. Other needed components include implementation of a national three-digit crisis hotline and additional research on and evaluation of crisis services( New opportunities to improve mental health crisis systems, 2021). Read MORE.
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration, 24 staff working as medics, counselors, caseworkers, and administrators would be needed to staff a mobile crisis response unit (Behavioral Health Workforce Report, 2020). Read MORE.
Co-responder models evidenced improved outcomes compared to police only models.. [and] research on youth models and crisis resolution home treatment suggested positive outcomes ( Re-examining mental health crisis intervention: A rapid review comparing outcomes across police, co-responder, and non-police models, 2022). Read MORE.
A national report says that to have the police department respond to the calls Crisis Assisting Helping Out on the Streets (CAHOOTS) currently covers, it would cost an additional $6.4 million (Redesigning Public Safety: Mental Health Emergency Response, 2023). Read MORE.
Identifying Safety Gaps
Scaling Safety Report
This report estimates what cities and counties need to invest in community-based public safety programs.
Scaling Safety Calculator
To estimate the scaling safety needs for your city, enter your city’s resident population into the Calculator.
Public Opinion on Safety Gaps
A 2020 Survey asked likely voters about their experiences with and preferences for public safety policy.
Share Your Stories
Are you interested in learning more about Scaling Safety? Or, submitting materials to be housed on the Scaling Safety Clearinghouse page?
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