Crimelabs: Actively involving young people in tackling youth crime
This morning the mayor signed Roel Wever and Maike Vlassak, project leader CIV Safety of the VISTA College, signed a covenant in the Town Hall in Heerlen as the starting signal for Crimelabs. Crimelabs is a project in which we actively involve students in the development of policy to combat youth crime in Heerlen-Noord. The Crimelabs approach is unique in Limburg and we guarantee it for at least ten years within the municipality and the VISTA College.
Crimelabs is a national project developed by Kennisland in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice and Security. In the project, students from the Enforcement, Supervision and Security program at VISTA College will advise the municipality each year on an issue concerning youth crime. This year, the issue is 'How do we deal with loitering youth in Heerlen-Noord?' In April 2025, the students will submit their advice to the mayor and policymakers of the municipality.
Together with young people
Mayor Roel Wever : “By actively involving young people in policy-making, we ensure that local interventions are better aligned with their living environment and needs. After all, young people know better than anyone what is going on among their peers and what they need to build a bright future. In this way, instead of making policy about young people, we make policy with young people.
Young people also feel heard and taken seriously, because they are allowed to think along in shaping new municipal policy. This educational path also enables students to develop new skills and become aware of the impact of juvenile crime on themselves and their environment.”
Prevention with Authority
Crimelabs fits within the broader efforts of the Prevention with Authority program of the municipality to tackle youth crime in Heerlen. Our focus is mainly on Heerlen-Noord. Due to poverty and social problems, among other things, young people in this part of the city are at greater risk of ending up in crime.