The president of Wyndham’s Blue Light disco has vowed it will continue, despite Victoria Police’s decision to stop its members from working at the events, which could lead to the withdrawal of other services.
Acting Sergeant Penny Renden, who heads the Wynbay Blue Light Disco for teenagers in Wyndham and Hobsons Bay, said dedicated police would work at the monthly Point Cook discos in their own time.
“If I have to request a rest day [off] to run the disco I will, because I have a passion for it,’’ she said.
‘‘I love seeing the kids’ happy faces and them interacting with uniformed police in an environment that builds trust.
“We have got heaps of support, with many public supervisors and a handful of [police] members who attend the disco regularly and are on the [Wynbay] executive committee.”
Commander Sue Clark reportedly said in a leaked email that on-duty police would be pulled from the state’s 41 alcohol-free discos to attend to front-line policing.
Blue Light Victoria chief executive Ivan Ray said some discos would “disappear”.
But Acting Sergeant Renden said the Wynbay disco, held at the Point Cook Community Centre, was so loved by the community that it would continue to thrive.
“Having us [uniformed officers] there is proactive because we are dealing with the kids in an enjoyable situation instead of dealing with them on the streets in a negative way,” she said. “If we do meet them in the street, we already have built a bond with them by dealing with them on another level.”
Acting Sergeant Renden said the Wynbay camp at Anglesea would go ahead later this year and she had already organised a police coach as transport before Victoria Police decided to withdraw resources.
Altona Labor MP Jill Hennessy said the state government had “abandoned another successful western suburbs crime prevention program”.
“[Premier] Denis Napthine is more concerned with saving his own job than ensuring Point Cook at-risk youth receive the assistance, guidance and programs they need to help them stay away from a life of crime,” she said.
