A toolkit of strategies for reducing crime and anti-social behaviour in communities, based on an international programme of research, has been published.
Stories of communities plagued by low-level crime and anti-social behaviour are seldom out of the news, the publishers report. While there is considerable evidence that urban design and management strategies can prevent or reduce these problems, a combination of approaches is often needed to deal with the complex issues involved, the authors add.
The new report, Crime Opportunity Profiling of Streets (COPS): a quick crime analysis rapid implementation approach, evaluates European practices for crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED). It focuses on what it calls a set of exemplar approaches formed into a toolkit of crime and anti-social behaviour prevention strategies.
The following were identified for detailed analysis and to form part of the toolkit:
Crime Opportunity Profiling of Streets (COPS), UK; includes a detailed survey of an area by an expert taking a visual audit of problems identified and voice recording of issues.
Kids & Space, the Netherlands, uses visual images of good and bad environmental situations to encourage young people to become involved in their environment.
Virtual CPTED, the Netherlands; uses a 3-D computer simulation of an area to address CPTED qualities from the viewpoint of a person wandering through the area.
Visual inspection/stickers to safety, the Netherlands; visual inspection of a neighbourhood by stakeholders and those having responsibility for the area.
Police Label Secured Housing, the Netherlands; applying a Police Label to an area, listing requirements aimed at improving social safety and preventing burglary and fire.
Criminological Regional Analysis (CRA), Germany; includes an analysis of relevant documents, statistics and victim surveys.
Integrated Audits (in crime prevention and traffic safety), Germany; assesses a space with regard to crime prevention (eg CPTED principles) and traffic safety, combined with systematic visual inspections of urban areas.
This report is the main output a project funded by the European Commission and BRE Trust to research crime prevention through environmental design, which was managed by BRE.
The research demonstrated, the authors claim, that the most effective approach across Europe combines:
physical approaches, focussing on architecture, urban planning, target hardening, etc;
social approaches focussing on victims, offenders, guardians, city management, maintenance, etc, and organisational approaches focussing on structuring the partnership process of implementing measures.
The report (Ref FB12) includes a CD containing case studies, supporting papers and presentations on the individual tools from the project partners, with colour illustrations.
It can be purchased from BRE press,
ring: 01344 404407 or email: [email protected]
