Locked gates are to be put across alleys behind terraced houses in disadvantaged areas of Belfast in a bid to cut down on crime and anti-social behaviour.
The Alleygate Project will involve installing 180 gates at the rear entries to terraces in five parts of the city at a cost of £500,000.
The areas are Beechmount and Woodvale in west Belfast, the Mount in east Belfast, Lower Windsor in the south and Little Americas in the north.
The pilot project is being funded by the Department of Social Development's Belfast Regeneration Office and the Northern Ireland Office's Community Safety Unit. The scheme will be administered by Belfast City Council aided by the Bryson Charitable Group, which has worked the communities in each area to secure their support for the project.
The gates are are all expected to be fitted by the end of March next year.
Alleygating has been used successfully in the Britain - they have helped cut crime such as domestic burglary - and an evaluation of the local schemes in Belfast will be carried out.
Each member of a community provided with gates will be given a key to their specific gate, and master keys will be held by the emergency and utility services.