Objectives:
The aim of the article is to identify the role that the activity of members of these communities organized in non-governmental organizations plays in ensuring the safety of local communities. The article also aims to identify factors that favor and disfavor the creation of grassroots social initiatives in conditions of deficiencies in civil society, which allow for a more complete understanding of the opportunities and challenges related to the use of social potential to ensure the security of local communities.

Material and methods:
The basic research technique used in the article was content analysis. The article analyzes mainly the content of the literature on the subject. Available source materials and existing legal acts were also used. The results of research on the functioning of the third sector in Poland were also analyzed in the text.

Results:
Non-governmental organizations, due to their "local nature", have much greater opportunities to engage in the implementation of tasks related to the security of local communities than, for example, in the field of national security. In local communities, especially small towns and villages, there is also an increased demand for support from non-state entities to meet the security needs of residents. However, the role of the third sector in ensuring the security of local communities will always be regulated by state law and the state of functioning of the state.

Conclusions:
The tasks of non-governmental organizations to ensure security will be different in times of peace, different in times of crisis, and still different in times of war. According to Polish law, the activities of non-governmental organizations during war or martial law may be suspended, may, however, be used to conduct military operations.