Since the 1980s Canada, as well as a host of other countries, has focused on community and social development to encourage crime prevention and enhanced community safety. By 1994 the Canadian Government had established the National Strategy on Community Safety and Crime Prevention (NCPS), which was mandated to promote the integration of government and non-governmental entities in the response to crime and victimization. This article focuses on the results of research and evaluations of programs supported under the NCPS, describing trends in the development and implementation of locally-based crime prevention and community safety programs in Canada. While evaluation findings indicate that many of the individual and community-based initiatives are effective, a more strategic approach involving multiple layers of partners is suggested. Also, more attention needs to be paid to the theories behind the social development approach so that problems may be avoided in the implementation and delivery of crime prevention programs. Finally, all strategic approaches to community safety and crime prevention must focus on building collaborative partnerships in high-crime areas which have traditionally been the most difficult communities in which to develop and sustain community capacity. Tables, notes, references