Police and Crime Commissioner Rupert Matthews has unveiled a new funding opportunity giving communities a frontline role in tackling rural crime.
As the nation looks ahead to Rural Crime Action Week (8-12 September), the Commissioner said the first round of his new Community Action Programme (CAP) was solely focused on protecting residents and livelihoods from rural criminality.
Rural crime remains a significant concern across the force area with offences such as machinery and plant theft, livestock worrying and fly-tipping impacting farms, rural businesses and quality of life, and costing the economy millions of pounds every year.
The Rural Crime Community Action Fund will support projects that aim to reduce rural crime and enhance community safety, with up to £10k available for successful applicants. Funding can be used for a variety of crime prevention tools and initiatives, such as:
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Equipment for rural crime prevention workshops that help to educate and engage residents
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Educational material for schools to promote awareness and resilience among young people and to reduce their risk of involvement in rural crime.
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Community equipment such as security lighting and motion sensors, lockable storage units, fencing barriers and security equipment.
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Vehicle tracking GPS systems to protect and track valuable equipment.
The fund is part of the PCC’s new flagship Community Action Programme designed to empower local communities to implement their own activities to prevent crime and support people to thrive.
It brings together a series of connected initiatives designed to equip small and grassroots organisations with the skills, knowledge and support they need to help residents thrive and to ‘prevent rather than cure’ crime and disorder – a strategy conceived nearly 200 years ago by the father of modern policing, Sir Robert Peel.
Announcing the first round, Mr Matthews said: “Rural crime has been a priority since I was first elected in 2021, with offences such as machinery theft and livestock worrying continuing to impact farms and businesses.
“Our Rural Crime Team has achieved outstanding results, disrupting crimes that cost local livelihoods and our economy millions of pounds each year, but of course I want to do more.
“Our rural communities are closely-knit places where people are passionate and dedicated to helping each other and their communities and I want to harness this expertise for the wider good. This fund will support these efforts and encourage further partnerships to form to build the safe and prosperous communities we all want to live in. Community safety is a shared mission, and I firmly believe the best solutions come from those who live, work and have inside knowledge of our rural communities.”
Rural Crime Action Week is a national initiative aimed at raising awareness about rural crime and its impact on communities.
This year's theme, ‘Voices from the Countryside,’ emphasises the importance of listening to and amplifying the experiences of victims of rural crime and the action needed to better protect them.
The Rural Community Action Fund is open to a wide range of applicants, including local groups, parish councils, neighbourhood watch schemes and registered charities. The Fund, which launches today (September 1st), will remain open until Friday 17th October 2025.
Further funding rounds will take place later in the year addressing the following themes: Road Safety, Violence and Vulnerability, Business Crime, Neighbourhood Crime and Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG).
For full details on the fund and to apply visit: https://www.leics.pcc.police.uk/Community-Action-Fund-Round-1.
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Posted on Monday 1st September 2025