Third Melbourne council to hire private security guards as ‘safety issues at their worst level’

An inner-west Melbourne council has become the third municipality to take crime prevention into its own hands by hiring private security to patrol antisocial hotspots, prompting calls for more police resources and funds for support services.

After an hour-long debate, Maribyrnong council voted on Tuesday night to support hiring guards to patrol central Footscray following a spate of violent incidents, including an alleged murder in the Nicholson Street mall and the fatal police shooting of a homeless man.

Security guards in the City of Melbourne.Credit: PENNY STEPHENS

The six-month trial is expected to begin in August and would cost ratepayers up to $100,000 for two security officers for 24 hours a week.

The decision follows a similar move at Melbourne City Council, which last month made its CBD security guard scheme permanent after a three-month pilot. The scheme costs $2 million for 11 guards per year.

Wyndham City Council, in the outer west, also voted last month to pay $372,000 for private security to patrol the streets of Truganina in a 12-month trial.

Security guards’ powers are limited to citizen’s arrests, but councils argue that they create a passive safety presence while accompanying the council’s local law officers, who enforce on-street behavioural issues such as public nuisance and alcohol consumption.

Opposition Leader Brad Battin blamed the government for fuelling a trend of local councils turning to private security to help their communities feel safe, which is costing ratepayers.

“When local councils are forced to step in and fund private security to fill the gaps, it’s a clear sign that the Labor government has failed to deliver on one of its most basic responsibilities: keeping Victorians safe,” Battin said.

“Victoria Police is under-resourced and underfunded, and it’s our community safety that’s paying the price.”

Police Association of Victoria chief executive Wayne Gatt said hiring security guards may be a practical interim solution for some councils, but he wanted to see improvements to police resourcing.

“The fact is that areas of high crime or where large groups of people commonly gather, were once areas of high police visibility via patrols, but due to capacity issues for Victoria Police, they’ve become areas where crime now flourishes,” Gatt said.

“Decades ago, we had less police but also less need for councils to employ security guards. This is grounded in the competing demands and poor and inefficient work practices currently faced by our members.”

A state government spokeswoman said an extra 60 police officers had been placed in the CBD and 144 officers had been sent to the west division, including Maribyrnong and Wyndham.

“We’ve also increased stop and search powers for Victoria Police to seize more weapons off our streets, and the possession ban on machetes kicks in on September 1,” she said.

Victoria Police declined to comment.

Maribyrnong made the private security move after Footscray traders undertook their own one-month trial hiring security guards, with the suburb experiencing a 26 per cent increase in crime since 2024.

The results led more than 20 business owners to advocate for the council to fund a security presence.

“The consensus from local traders ... was that the safety issues in Footscray are at their worst level for as long as anyone can remember, and there was a request that something needs to be done urgently to address it,” council documents show.

Council papers show that short-term interventions and police operations have not made an ongoing difference to antisocial behaviour in central Footscray, and regular daily and weekly police patrols could not be guaranteed.

Councillors on Tuesday night agreed that the situation in Footscray was grave enough to warrant trying a security guard program but, after receiving a series of disapproving public questions, they clashed over the extent of community consultation and the need for officers to have experience working with vulnerable people.

Councillor Bernadette Thomas successfully moved an alternative motion that included a health approach. She was concerned that the proposal had not been put to the broader community and she opposed a heavy-handed, security-first strategy.

“We wouldn’t be, hopefully, engaging security that typically does nightclubs,” Thomas said.

“There’s a clear distinction between turfing people out of a space because the owner of that space doesn’t want them there, versus working in a space where there’s a lot of vulnerable people. It requires a really sensitive approach.”

Mayor Pradeep Tiwari disputed that community had not been heard and said he did not want to impede the scheme’s introduction, saying it would complement the work of outreach services.

“The proposed security patrols intend to complement these efforts with a non-enforcement, visible safety presence, particularly during peak periods,” Tiwari said.

“The proposal is not about a policing operation and it’s not about targeting any one group. It’s about creating a safe, welcoming environment for all, especially for families, workers and vulnerable residents.”

Caitlin Caruana, director of community legal centre Westjustice, said while she was concerned by the rise in antisocial behaviour and rough sleeping in Footscray, she was very disappointed in the council’s decision.

“Security guards address the wrong end of the problem and are yet to show any real impact on community safety in other council areas,” Caruana said.

“[They] have no more power than the average citizen ... For the same price as the security guard roll-out, Maribyrnong could have invested in a properly trained social worker or other services that can help people to address their offending behaviour in a meaningful way.”

Security guard patrols are also increasingly being paid for by private operators, such as at housing estates in Melbourne’s outer suburbs and schools.

Melbourne Lord Mayor Nick Reece, who spearheaded the CBD’s security guard scheme after promising the trial during his election campaign last year, said it was the biggest shift in on-street safety in Victoria since protective services officers were introduced 13 years ago.

He said the security officers would work in partnership with police.

“These officers will have the training and equipment to enable them to address a range of issues on our streets to help the city look and feel safer,” Reece said.

“They’ll also be trained to support vulnerable community members, including people experiencing homelessness and those affected by drug and alcohol issues.”

At the Wyndham City Council, five out of 11 councillors expressed concern about the security guard idea and 43 per cent of residents responding to community consultation were opposed.

“This is an absurd use of council resources,” said Councillor Robert Szatkowski during the June meeting. “We are not a private security agency. These patrols risk damaging relationships with Victoria Police … and blur the lines of who is actually responsible for public safety.”

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.