Sligo BID welcomes Garda Initiative with increased Garda visibility for Sligo Town

Sligo Business Improvement District (BID) welcomes the news that Sligo town will be gaining two full time Gardaí for a three-month period as a visible presence walking the streets. This builds upon a pre-existing project delivered by Gardai in Sligo town and was approved using data from the Garda Pulse System and feedback from the business community and from reports from the Purple Pulse app. The app is an initiative of the Sligo Night Time Economy Pilot, delivered by Sligo BID in partnership with Sligo County Council and funded by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport. Additional support for the app was received by the Department of Justice Community Safety Fund.

Gail McGibbon, CEO of Sligo BID said:

“This visual presence is a wonderful addition to the streets and town for crime prevention and increased feelings of safety. The significant investment of the Guards into this initiative further deepens the partnership between the Guards and the community and encourages further collaboration and communication together. We are excited to collaborate for the three months and beyond on this initiative delivered by the Sligo Gardaí.”

Superintendent Tom Colsh said:

“We are delighted to be re-energising and putting renewed focus on an ongoing initiative to support businesses and our communities in a high visibility policing capacity in Sligo. We have seen an increase in thefts from shops lately and this High Vis police presence will also act as a deterrent to criminals, both local and travelling crime groups, during the busy shopping time in the run into Christmas.”