Canberrans can feel safer knowing that their elderly and vulnerable relatives will be helped home, with ACT Policing unveiling a new next of kin card.
Community Engagement Team, Sergeant Ben Willis said the Next of Kin initiative was developed to support officers’ response to incidents involving elderly and vulnerable members of the community who, at times, were unable to provide Next of Kin information.
Sergeant Willis said there had been an increase in situations where officers had been unable to identify someone quickly.
“These cards are incredibly useful for our aging population,” Sergeant Willis said.
“They’re small enough to fit into the back of a phone, a vehicle console or wallet,” he said.
“We need to find new and innovative ways to support families and assist police officers faster in finding individuals in the event of a missing person or casualty.”
Sergeant Willis said Canberrans could now walk into any ACT police station and collect free Next of Kin cards from the front office.
He said ACT Policing recognised a Next of Kin as a person’s spouse, domestic partner or closest living blood relative who was over 18 years of age.
Sergeant Willis said the cards had space for people to fill in the holder’s name, their date of birth, and nominated Next of Kin contact details.
“Importantly, the information is only written on the card, no personal information is held by ACT Policing,” he said.
