Hindley Street Program™
Situation
Hindley Street is a popular celebration area in the city of Adelaide, consisting of numerous bars, nightclubs and entertainment venues, many of which hold 24-hour liquor licenses. These venues have a combined maximum capacity of approximately 17,000 people.
As evident by the consistent media coverage, there is a concerning number of alcohol-related problems which impact public safety in Hindley Street.
Furthermore, government reports indicate that…
11.5% of reported crime in the CBD occurs on Hindley Street.
Ambulance callouts and presentations to the Royal Adelaide Hospital for alcohol-related issues peak in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Offences in the West End of the CBD are more likely to be alcohol related than in other parts of the city, with the primary victims and perpetrators being 18–24-year-old males.
Response
By invitation from SA Police, Encounter Youth launched the Hindley Street Program in August 2011. Today, the Hindley Street Program is supported by the South Australian Government through the Attorney-General’s Department and SA Police, as part of their crime prevention strategies.
Every Saturday night in the Hindley Street entertainment precinct, between 11:30pm and 5:00am, a group of Green Team volunteers patrol the area offering a safe presence. In addition to this, the volunteers also refer to relevant services, give out free bottled water and make themselves available to Hindley Street patrons—from providing support to those in distress, to hanging out with those who want to chat.
During 2022, the Encounter Youth Green Team…
Had positive interactions with over 15,000 young people.
Responded to 38 incidents where young people required emergency service assistance.
Supported numerous young people in vulnerable situations due to excessive alcohol consumption thus preventing further harm from occurring.
Actively encouraged and supported countless young people to head home after excessive alcohol consumption.
Collaborate
The Hindley Street Program has made a real and tangible impact, not only in the lives of the patrons we meet and serve, but in the relationships we’ve built in Adelaide’s West End with other community services providers, owners, bouncers, licensees, and more. Consistent with our holistic approach of working in complex social environments, we lead the Hindley Street Program Key Stakeholders Group.
Every eight weeks we meet with representatives from the SA Attorney-General’s Department, Consumer and Business Services, SA Police, SA Ambulance, and the City of Adelaide. We share details of our Saturday night observations and critical incident referral statistics. We encourage and foster an environment of transparency and collaboration where each stakeholder is able to share their main challenges, opportunities and objectives. This is done so that all key stakeholders can work collaboratively to improve late night safety in the precinct.
We give out 89 KILOS of Minties each year.
We give out 7,500 bottles of water every year.
Green Team volunteers have met over 115,000 people along Hindley Street.
81% of young people feel that the presence of Encounter Youth Green Team volunteers made them feel safer on Hindley Street.
We work collaboratively with the Attorney General’s Department, SA Police, SA Ambulance, Consumer & Business Services and City of Adelaide.
Thank you to the Attorney-General’s Department and SA Police for their ongoing support and contribution to the Hindley Street Program.
Find Out More?
If you have a question, don’t hesitate to get in touch via our contact form or call us directly on (08) 8179 0300.
We’d love to hear from you.