crn

SEPT 2004
crime reduction news

STUDENT VICTIMISATION
Lessons on how to keep
crime down on campus

VIOLENT CRIME
Time to take a tough
stance on violence

Race crime
An equal society free from
racially-motivated crime
CONTENTS

Welcome Taking effective and long-lasting action on crime

requires commitment, understanding and trust.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the sensitive area of racially motivated crime. In
this issue we focus on race crime, examining the motivations of the perpetrators, the
consequences suffered by the victims and the legislative powers and practical solutions
that are helping communities to live without fear of racial harassment and hatred.
Understanding was key to the success of a campaign to reduce student victimisation.
As colleges and universities start the new term, find out how partnership working and
the direct involvement of students on campus is helping to cut crime.
In fact, the young product designers, architects and town planners of tomorrow will
have an important role to play in making our communities safer. We find out how
crime-busting design can be used to beat opportunist criminals and improve
neighbourhood safety, too.

The Crime Reduction News team

Inside… Plus...
Special report 11-14
News Features
3 Cannabis campaign update 9 Prioritising persistent offenders
4 Latest crime statistics Effective new measures are being
introduced to break the cycle of
5 Beacon Scheme best practice
crime among prolific offenders
6 Literacy programme reviewed
16 Calling time on violent crime
7 Police news update New strategies will target the
8 Toolkits perpetrators of interpersonal
22 Volunteer news and domestic violence
18 Students get wise to crime
Clever campaigns are helping to
spread the anti-crime message
Regulars and reduce student victimisation
10 Race crime
How to... 20 Designed to stop crime
● Legislation update
...work with hard-to-reach groups The right design solutions can
●
15 Comment help to reduce crime and create Raising awareness
Take action on racism safer communities ● Case studies
● Tackling community tensions

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2 Crime Reduction News

 NEWS

news
ALSO INSIDE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY
BICHARD ENQUIRY RESPONSE
YOUTH JUSTICE PLEDGE TARGETS

Talking frankly about drugs

Almost all young people

know that cannabis is illegal
and the number of arrests
for cannabis possession is
falling, according to a new
study published by the
Home Office in May.
Ninety-three per cent of
14- to 17-year-olds surveyed
are clear that cannabis is
illegal. This message was
backed up by the £1 million
FRANK campaign that ran
in the new year to educate
the public about the change
in law following cannabis
reclassification.
The campaign, which
included radio adverts,
leaflets and an information
pack sent out to all schools
drug advisors, drug action
teams, drug charities, youth
organisations and student
unions, was aimed at
under-18s.
The FRANK Stakeholder
Awards highlight the good
work being done by local
FRANK initiatives. The nine
regional winners and one
national winner were
announced at the end of
August. For more details,
visit http://www. drugs.
gov.uk/Campaign
NEWS
IN BRIEF
Young hearts
The Russell Commission,
set up by the Government,
is looking at ways of
encouraging youngsters
to volunteer within their
communities. The Home
Secretary David Blunkett
said: ‘‘When young people
get actively involved in
their neighbourhoods,
that brings huge benefits
– to the young person,
to the local groups
they support and to
the wider community.’’

New team to tackle bureaucracy Swift justice

The Policing Bureaucracy Gateway (PBG) went the bureaucratic impact. This means that the The first Community
live on 1 September. This is a new joint ACPO- PBG will not challenge the ‘technical’ expertise Justice Centre in
Home Office initiative with the overall aim of of the authors. Britain is opening in
minimising unnecessary bureaucratic demands The PBG will also encourage local police forces North Liverpool. The
on frontline police officers and staff. to set up their own Gateways in order to minimise centre aims to provide
Authors of new proposals, policies and forms unnecessary bureaucracy produced locally. swifter judicial
will be expected to fully consider the bureaucratic A PBG website is currently being developed as processes and give
impact of their initiatives. part of the Police Reform website. For further offenders faster access
The PBG team will then review the proposal information in the interim, email: to custody alternatives,
with regard to bureaucracy: it will only assess pbg@acpo.pnn.police.uk or policingbureaucracy- including drug treatment
whether authors have adequately considered gateway@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk and restorative justice.

Crime Reduction News 3

NEWS
CRIME Crime continues to fall
STATISTICS LATEST STATISTICS BUILD ON ENCOURAGING TREND
T
he British Crime Survey (BCS) revealed that levels of
crime in England and Wales fell by five per cent in the
last year. Over the last decade, violent crime has fallen
significantly and there have been dramatic reductions in the
numbers of burglaries and vehicle thefts. There are now 5.3
million fewer victims of crime than in 1995 and the risk of
being a victim of burglary is now half that of nine years ago.
The Home Secretary David Blunkett welcomed the
news: “These are promising results which reinforce the
major progress made in fighting crime since 1997.”
The good news was tempered by an increase in the
numbers of recorded violent crime by 12 per cent.
However, this can be attributed to the introduction of
an entirely new recording practice introduced by the
Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), record
numbers of police officers to register crimes and an
increased willingness by the public to report crime.
Working together
The trend for increased levels of anti-social behaviour and
low-level thuggery that has emerged over recent years is
being tackled by the Government’s TOGETHER Action
Plan and the implementation of the Anti-Social Behaviour
Act. These tough measures have already contributed to a
five per cent fall in the levels of worry about anti-social
behaviour compared with the last 12 months.
Alcohol-fuelled violent crime is now a key target.
ACPO and the Police Standards Unit (PSU) in the Home
Office are working with partners such as Trading Standards
on a nationwide campaign to blitz trouble spots and
implement a tough alcohol enforcement campaign. For
more details, visit www.crimereduction.gov.uk/statistics
4 Crime Reduction News
KEY FIGURES
Total crime
 BCS crime is down five per cent.*
Police recorded crime has increased
by one per cent.
Domestic burglary
 BCS fell by three per cent.*
 Police recorded crime fell eight per
cent. Chance of being burgled at its
lowest level in 20 years.
Robbery
 There continues to be a sustained
fall in robbery, building on the
success of the Street Crime Initiative.
 Police recorded crime fall of six
per cent.
Violent crime
 BCS fall of three per cent.*
 Police recorded violent crime
increase of 12 per cent.
Police recorded serious violence
and less serious violence have
increased – this may be due,
in part, to the continuing effects
of recording changes and a
greater willingness of victims
Citizen focused policing
The work of the Citizen Focused Policing
Delivery and Change Group (DCG) is
underway to promote citizen focused
strategies and support the cultural and
organisational changes needed to deliver
them. The DCG exists to bring practitioner
feedback into the developing proposals on
citizen focused policing and to lead a
process of change to deliver it by
championing the approach in individual’s
forces and supporting peers in others.
The first meeting was chaired by acting
Deputy Chief Constable Ian McPherson
from Merseyside and focused on building a
common understanding of citizen focused
to come forward, as well as
record number of police
officers to record offences.
Vehicle crime
 Thefts of and from a vehicle
continue to fall.
 BCS fall of ten per cent.
 Police recorded vehicle crime
fall of nine per cent.
Victimisation rate
 The BCS shows the risk of being a
victim of crime is at its lowest since
the BCS began in 1981.
 The risk of becoming a victim
of crime has fallen from 40 per cent
in 1995 to 26 per cent in 2003/2004,
that is 5.3 million fewer people
falling victim to crime.
Tough new powers in the Anti-Social
Behaviour Act will focus on low-level
thuggery, anti-social behaviour
and alcohol-related incidents that
are now recorded by the police as
‘violent crime’.
*These single-year changes are not
statistically significant
policing with input from the Chair, the
Home Office, HMIC and the Office for
Public Services Reform. ‘‘This is an
important opportunity to inform policy
development with practitioners’ views, and
to help forces and authorities implement
the necessary changes to make their service
citizen focused,’’ said McPherson.
Practitioners from 14 forces spent
time examining the work areas in which
they could make an impact. Key issues
identified for organisational and cultural
change include training and business
processes. For more information contact:
cath.kitching@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk

LDMPs
deliver
change
A new Local Delivery Managers
Project (LDMP) has been set
up to help improve
performance across all areas
of Home Office business.
Delivery managers
participating in the project
are being asked to identify
barriers to delivery, challenge
the way areas of operation
are performing, establish
the reasons for failure to
meet targets and act as
decisive agents for change
and improvements.
Delivery managers are also
expected to provide feedback
to the Home Office and other
Government departments on
how central policies and
requirements can be changed
to better support the effective
delivery of objectives and
outcomes, particularly those
requiring cross-cutting
partnership working.
NEWS
Grime
busters NEWS
IN BRIEF
Cleaner, greener and safer neighbourhoods
are about to become a reality for more
than 70 communities throughout England A boost for
and Wales thanks to funding from the
Home Office. In total, £1.1 million has
sustainable
been awarded to 73 projects as part of communities
Operation Gate It, a £2.3 million Home
Office programme that tackles anti-social A new sustainable
behaviour by sprucing-up areas that are communities award
run-down, badly designed or poorly has been created by
maintained. The money will be spent Deputy Prime Minister
on providing extra lighting, landscaping John Prescott to reward
and CCTV cameras. community regeneration
projects. To qualify for
the award nominees
In total, £1.1 million has been must show some
success in creating
awarded to 73 projects attractive, harmonious
and environmentally-
friendly communities
Beacon scheme with good services,
transportation and
governance. They must
shining example of also show that the local
community has been
best practice actively involved in their
plans. Winners will
be announced at
the Sustainable
Council staff and their community safety partners came together in Communities Summit at
Manchester in June to share best practice experiences and pool the end of January 2005.
their knowledge in a bid to combat crime and disorder. See www.crimereduc-
The Beacon Learning Exchange for Crime and Disorder tion.gov.uk/activecom-
Partnerships was organised by the Improvement and Development munities64.htm
Agency (IDeA). The Beacon Council Scheme, an initiative that identi-
fies excellence and innovation in local government, is an Office of
the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) scheme run with the support of A better deal
the IDeA. Nine councils were awarded Beacon status this year:
West Sussex Strategic Community Safety Partnership;
for witnesses
Middlesbrough Council; Stockton-on-Tees – Safer Stockton The findings of Surveys
Partnership; London Borough of Bexley; Cannock Chase Council; of Vulnerable and
Teignbridge District Council; Suffolk County Council; Darlington Intimidated Witnesses
Borough Council, and Safer Southwark Partnerships. 2000/1 and 2003,
In her keynote speech, Diana Sampson (below) of the Home published in June, show
Office Crime Director’s Regional Performance Team, said: “The that special measures in
standards for Beacon selection were very high. We were looking courts are encouraging
for strong, effective partnerships, good performance management more people to testify
and leadership, innovative crime reduction projects and sound and increasing public
methods of measuring and evaluating progress.” However, she confidence in the
also reminded delegates that their work is ongoing: criminal justice system.
“Don’t take your foot off the gas!” she said. Satisfaction rates for
After the event, delegates’ views on the work- intimidated witnesses
shops were canvassed. Feedback praised the good increased from 64 per
practice workshops, their usefulness as a one- cent to 80 per cent.
stop-shop for advice and guidance, and a good For full details, visit
way of learning from practical experience www.crimereduction.
rather than theory. For details visit: gov.uk/victims32.htm
www.idea.gov.uk/beacons/round6/
Crime Reduction News 5
 NEWS
NEWS Literacy programmes
IN BRIEF
under examination
Summer blitz
helps cut crime
The nationwide Alcohol
Misuse Enforcement
campaign in August
was praised by Home
Secretary David Blunkett
for, ‘‘revealing real results
in tackling underage and
binge drinking and alcohol-
fuelled disorder.’’ He
commended the work of
the 92 Basic Command
Units (BCUs) who visited
over 14,000 premises,
issued 1,800 fixed penalty
notices and conducted 646
test purchase operations.
The lessons learned will be
made available to all BCUs
to help them take firm
action in their work against
those who take part in or
encourage alcohol-related
violence and binge
drinking. For more details,
contact: Amec@home
office.gsi.gov.uk
Neighbourhood Watch –
a force for the future
A consultation is underway on the study
recently carried out into Neighbourhood
Watch (NW) to identify ways in which
NW could be supported, developed and
strengthened.
The study found that, broadly speaking,
NW was ‘‘alive and well, popular and well
known’’. Both police and local Crime and
Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRPs)
saw NW as important to community
engagement in crime reduction. Schemes
appeared to be growing in number, partly
due to the increasing employment of
dedicated staff. However, not all police
services or CDRPs had a clearly stated
policy and specific training was not
generally provided; nor was there a
system for sharing ideas and good practice.
Areas for improvement were identifed,
6 Crime Reduction News
57 per cent of the offenders in the
study had reading and writing skills
below that of an average 11-year-old
including: a national forum for police
and local authority staff to exchange
information and good practice via a new
website; an e-mailing network and
conferences; further integration of NW
with other community issues; and
schemes which attract young people, and
black and minority ethnic groups.
Ministers want NW to become
involved in the wider issues as well as
its traditional concerns. As Home
Minster Hazel Blears recently said:
“Neighbourhood Watch is an important
part of the Government’s plans to make
our streets and communities safer places
to live and work.”
For the consultation questionnaire and
a summary of the report, visit
www.watchconsult.net
A study into literacy
programmes for offenders
found that programme
requirements frequently
exceeded the literacy skills
of the participants.
Fifty-seven per cent of
the offenders in the study
had reading and writing
skills below that of an
average 11-year-old – the
minimum standard required
by the programmes. The
study also found that the gap
between requirements and
actual skills was particularly
significant in speaking and
listening skills.
As a result of the findings,
the study recommended that
tutors and case workers be
given more training to better
accommodate the needs of
offenders with poor literacy
skills. Other recommendations
included updating programme
materials and manuals, better
assessment methods to
evaluate offenders’ actual
skills and providing
programme participants
with more literacy support.
Partners
against crime
The Home Office's Partnership Performance and
Support Unit (PPSU) is starting a new programme of
work to help local partnerships deliver what their
communities want – a reduction in crime, disorder
and substance misuse in their area.
The Unit is developing an integrated approach to
partnership performance management across the
crime and drugs agendas under which Government
Offices (GOs) and the Welsh Assembly will be held to
account for the delivery of local partnerships. The aim
is to provide GOs with greater clarity on Home Office
expectations in terms of reducing crime, disorder and
substance misuse and then to leave them to manage
delivery in co-operation with the partnerships in their
area. The Home Office will look at results, not the
processes that produce them, and will itself do more
to help provide partnerships with the tools they need.
For more information, contact Jane Carpenter on
01347 825090.

Appliance of
science
The revised Police Science and
Technology Strategy 2004-2009,
published in May, builds on last year’s
commitment to meet policing needs
and capabilities now and in the future.
The strategy aims to ensure that the
police service remains equipped with the
best tools and techniques available to
enable them to work with maximum
effectiveness and efficiency, and remains
an important component of the police
reform programme.
A significant force behind the work
being done in this field is the Police
Science and Technology Strategy Group, a
unique partnership between central
government, the police service, police
authorities, industry and academic
bodies. The strategy aims to help police
take advantage of the opportunities
offered by science and technology to
deliver effective policing and stay one
step ahead of potential technological
misuse. Visit www.policereform.gov.uk/
implementation/scienceandtech.html
The strategy aims to ensure
the police service remains
equipped with the best tools
and techniques
HO response to Bichard Inquiry
The Home Office has responded to the
Bichard Inquiry by outlining a range
of initiatives. Published in June, the
Bichard Inquiry Report revealed serious
errors in the recording and managing
of information relating to Ian Huntley,
who was convicted of the murders of
Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman.
Home Secretary David Blunkett
said the Home Office, along with other
key government departments, would
act immediately to rectify the failings
identified within the report.
Measures include overseeing the
introduction of IMPACT, the first
national police intelligence computer
system, plus the development of a
statutory code of practice on police
information handling.
“It is our task to ensure clear national
standards as well as providing strong
leadership, but other national bodies
POLICE NEWS
NEWS
IN BRIEF
Income
guidelines
published
A guide to income
generation for the Police
Service in England and
Wales has been produced
by members of the Police
Forum for Income
Generation (PolFIG)
in response to a
Reducing Bureaucracy
recommendation.
The guide covers a
wide range of topics,
including bids and
grants, sponsorship and
special police services,
together with advice on
the formation of
independent charities
or trusts.
For a copy of the
Guide to Income
Generation, visit
www.acpo.police.uk/
policies
Building respect
and local agencies also have a key role The Home Secretary David Blunkett has called on
in strengthening the system,” said Blunkett. police officers to work alongside the Government
“We owe it to the families of Jessica and and local communities and organisations in
Holly to make substantial progress, as rebuilding a culture of respect.
rapidly as possible, in ensuring that Speaking to rank and file officers at the annual
failures are not repeated.” Police Federation conference in Bournemouth in
May, Blunkett said officers had a key role to play
in their position as the lynchpin of local policing
and the cornerstone of values and respect in
our communities.
In his speech, he also described relations
between the Government and the police as better
than at any time in the last 15 years and said that
he looked forward to working with them on the
second stage of police reform.
“The eroding of a culture of respect in modern
society is a particular problem for the police and
all too often makes the law-abiding citizen feel
they are in a minority. As a society, we need to
tackle this and both Government and the police
have a key role to play here,” Blunkett said.
Crime Reduction News 7
POLICE NEWS

Youth justice pledge success

Figures for the first quarter of 2004 have revealed how
the Government has met its pledge to halve the time
from arrest to sentence for persistent young offenders
for two years running.
The pledge was first announced in 1997 and scheduled
to be delivered by May 2002. It was first achieved in August
2001. Since then, the pledge has been met for 24 out of
27 months.The figure for January to March 2004 was
66 days, the same as the figure for the previous quarter.
‘‘The continued efforts of all the local criminal justice
agencies in making sure persistent young offenders
are brought to justice quickly is to be congratulated,’’
explained Home Office minister with responsibility
for youth justice, Paul Goggins.
‘‘The reforms to the way that these cases are handled
at all stages of the criminal justice system, that are being
brought in through the Criminal Justice Act, can only
improve on this success.’’

TOOLS A round-up
of crime reduction tools currently available

Primary Care Trust guidance

Racist Incidents and Harassment
A comprehensive ten-part guide to tackling racially
motivated incidents and racial harassment. In addition
to identifying risk factors and providing solutions and
strategies, the toolkit clarifies legislation, provides practical
tools and offers a wealth of useful information. See
www.crimereduction.gov.uk/toolkits/rh00.htm
Tackling burglary
A new Home Office burglary mini-site has been
launched to disseminate good practice to practitioners
and to provide them with the necessary tools to effectively
reduce domestic burglary in partnership with other public
and private bodies.
The website explains the different types of domestic
burglary, offers updates, practical advice and good practice
guidelines in addition to tools that include leaflets and
CDs. For more information, visit
www.crimereduction.gov.uk/domesticburglary
or email tacklingburglary@ homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) in England became
‘responsible authorities’ under the Crime and Disorder
Act 1998, amended by the Police Reform Act 2002, on
30 April 2004. Joint Department of Health and Home
Office guidance has been produced to support the new
arrangements. It outlines the benefits of improved
PCT involvement in partnerships and how this can assist
partnerships to address issues common to the health, crime
and drugs agenda. The guidance is available online at:
www.crimereduction.gov.uk/aud02.htm; www.drugs.gov.
uk/WorkPages/CoreDocuments/PCTGuidance;
www.dh.gov.uk on the guidance pages, and www.NTA.nhs.
uk/programme/national/criminal_justice.htm
Defining and measuring anti-social behaviour
The Home Office Research Development and Statistics
Directorate have recently published a guide to help define
and measure anti-social behaviour (ASB). This practical
tool for ASB co-ordinators and other crime and disorder
reduction practitioners aims to help improve understanding
of local ABS problems and offers guidance on key issues
such as collecting and responding to data. The report is avail-
able from www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pubsintro1.html
Laying down the law on alcohol
A new 4-page, A5 leaflet and a poster have been produced to To order materials, visit
support police, trading standards and associated organisa- www.crimereduction.co.
tions deal with on and off licence premises. Think Before uk/publicitycatalogue,
They Drink – Alcohol – the Law Explained explains some of email homeoffice@
the main laws relevant to licence holders and gives useful prolog.uk.com
advice. Order codes HOTBTD (leaflet) and PTBTD (poster) or phone 0870 241 468

8 Crime Reduction News

 FEATURE

Targeting prolific
and priority offenders
A NEW STRATEGY IS BEING
ROLLED OUT NATIONWIDE
TO HELP PROLIFIC OFFENDERS
BREAK THE CYCLE OF CRIME AND
CREATE SAFER COMMUNITIES

A
ccording to Home Office estimates, prolific
offenders commit around 400 offences a year. To try
to tackle the problem, the new Prolific and Other
Priority Offenders Strategy is being introduced across
England and Wales.
Each local Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership
(CDRP) together with the Local Criminal Justice Board is
being asked to identify 15-20 individuals – more in higher
crime areas – who appear to be causing significant harm
their local community.
“The majority of prolific offenders are class ‘A’ drug users
who offend to feed their habit,” explains Inspector Catherine
Tarrant, of the Home Office’s strategy implementation team.
“Offenders commit crime and are arrested and are dealt with
within the Criminal Justice system. They re-offend and the
‘cyclical pattern of offending’ continues. We hope to break
the cycle by doing more to rehabilitate and individually case
manage offenders in prison and in their local communities.”
A shared goal
The idea is that the CDRP’s agencies will work together to
prevent and deter individuals from offending, catch and
convict those who are currently criminally active and then
provide an individually-tailored rehabilitation programme
to tackle their needs and break their offending habits.
Where a drug-misusing offender is involved the scheme
will link in to the Criminal Justice Interventions Programme
(CJIP) which is working to get such individuals out of
crime and into treatment. Local integrated teams(CJITs),
which work to the Drug Action Team, will be responsible
for ensuring that identified drug-misusing offenders will
get sustained attention through the criminal justice system,
via treatment and beyond into resettlement.
The key to the strategy’s success will be greater co-
operation between statutory multi-agencies and voluntary
sector agencies, and better information sharing. “Individuals
will be identified through police analysing intelligence from
a range of sources including local communities,” says
Inspector Tarrant.
If the offender chooses to co-operate with their local
scheme, they will get all the help they need. If they do
not, they will be targeted by the agencies involved and
this will continue until they are either arrested or become
co-operative. “Offenders can opt in to a local scheme at
any time, but they can’t opt out,” says Inspector Tarrant. “Offenders can
Although the strategy is still at the implementation stage
nationally, some local priority offenders schemes are already opt in to a local
up and running. One example is the Prolific Offenders scheme at any
Scheme of Avon and Somerset constabulary, which started time, but they
in March 2002. Since then, it has slashed burglaries in the
area by a quarter, helped more than 160 people and saved
can’t opt out”
the local community around £2.4 million.
One of their success stories is Pete, who is currently
undergoing a drug treatment programme at a centre in
Devon. Pete was thirteen when he first started sniffing glue
and smoking cannabis. Sixteen years later, his drug habit
was costing him £500 a day and he was regularly breaking
into houses to fund it. He recently got a 31-month sentence
for 24 burglaries. Within two and a half weeks of release, he
had re-offended and was back in prison.
Now, though, Pete has just signed up for the next six
month stage of treatment to help him kick his crack
cocaine, heroin and offending habits for good.
“This scheme brings together all the necessary agencies to
tackle a shared list of priority offenders,” says Avon and
Somerset Assistant Chief Constable, Steve Mortimore.
“It’s important that the police, probation and prison service
work together, in local police stations, as a cohesive team.”
For more information, visit: www.drugs.gov.uk/
WorkPages/CriminalJusticeInterventionsProgramme
and www.crimereduction.gov.uk/ppo

Crime Reduction News 9

HOW TO

Work with
hard-to-reach
groups
LEARNING HOW TO APPROACH AND WORK WITH HARD-TO-REACH
GROUPS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ELEMENTS OF AN
EFFECTIVE AND LONG-LASTING CRIME REDUCTION STRATEGY

very group has its own customs, cultures and mores –

E as well as its own problems and issues. Before you can

approach hard-to-reach groups, you need to do your
homework and get a proper understanding of their culture.

Be prepared
If you have no experience yourself, speak to other people
and organisations who do have previous experience of
dealing with people from a similar background.
“If you go blundering in, you can end up creating more
barriers,” explains Mel Thorn, the Community Safety
Officer for Newark and Sherwood District Council. Thorn
has done a lot of work with traveller groups in the district.
“I speak to one gentleman who is very happy to talk to
me for two hours in his home and act as an intermediary
with other traveller groups. However, he won’t come to
‘official’ meetings because he doesn’t want to be seen as
being involved with the authorities. That’s how it is and
you have to be flexible enough to work around it.”

Identify needs
Once you know the people, the next stage is to find out
what the problems are and what they actually want. Do
they want a series of regular, formal meetings where they
can come and have their say? Do they prefer one-on-one
chats where their concerns or ideas are relayed back
through an intermediary? Whatever their preference,
they will need help to arrange it.
If language is an issue, for example, suitable interpreters
will be needed. In Thorn’s case, he had to find someone that
the travellers trusted to take notes of what was being said
and, where necessary, explain to them what was discussed
as many of them can’t read or write. “If you’re not sensitive
to these nuances you can cause offence,” he says.
Communicate
After helping to set the group up, give the participants as
much involvement in it as they would like. When specific
issues or problems arise, talk to the group to find out what
they would like to see done about them and what actions
they are happy to take.
“Many of the travellers I talk to have been subjected to
racial discrimination,” says Thorn. “As a rule they won’t When specific
come to the police to make a formal complaint but they
would like problems to be sorted out behind the scenes.”
problems arise,
talk to the group to
Build trust find out what they
There is a tendency among many hard-to-reach groups would like to see
to try to solve problems themselves and avoid going to
the authorities. Building up more trust is the key to done about them
encouraging people to be more open about their situation and what actions
so that you can get a more realistic view of their problems they are happy
and work with them to find solutions.
to take
“You can’t expect miracles overnight because it takes
time to build relationships,” says Mel. “But if you’re
properly prepared, you fully understand and appreciate
their standards, culture and ethos and you don’t try to
change them, you will eventually find a way of talking
to them and helping them on their terms.”

10 Crime Reduction News

 SPECIAL
REPORT
Race crime
ALSO INSIDE TACKLING COMMUNITY TENSIONS AND PUTTING A STOP TO RURAL RACISM
An equal society n July, Home Secretary David Blunkett delivered a keynote
I speech, ‘New challenges for race equality and community
cohesion in the 21st century’, at the Institute of Public
Policy Research. In it he said: “We need to tackle the inequalities
which still hold our society back, and work towards a situation
where people’s life chances are not restricted by their race,
culture or religious belief.
We are working with the Treasury and other departments to
put reducing race inequalities at the heart of delivery right across
Government. As part of our wider targets on education, housing,
employment and health, we will bear down on race inequalities
wherever they exist, with a clear commitment to public
accountability for the progress we make.”
The aim is to develop a Community Cohesion and Race
Equality strategy and to begin the debate, the Home Office
published the consultation paper ‘Strength in Diversity’ in
May. The paper says that the rise in international terrorism,
new patterns of migration and the effects of globalisation can
all contribute to people’s sense of insecurity and fear, which is
often most profoundly felt in areas suffering from deprivation
 Contact Fairness for All: A New Commission for Equality and Human Rights
| New challenges for race equality and community cohesion in the 21st
http://www.dti.gov.uk/consultations/|
century www.homeoffice.gov.uk/docs3/race-speech.pdf|| Strength in Diversity www.homeoffice.gov.uk/docs3/
strengthindiversity.html
THE GOVERNMENT
IS COMMITED TO
ENSURING
EQUALITY FOR
ALL AND A
SOCIETY FREE
FROM RACISM
or where change occurs over a short period of time. It
acknowledges those concerns as valid and confirms that
the Government is working to address the cause and
continue to drive out racism and extremism, political
and religious, wherever they are found.
It also says that Britain has come a long way from the
days when racism was openly displayed in public and that
there are now strong anti-racism messages throughout
society. The British Social Attitudes Survey reveals that there
is widespread support for anti-discrimination legislation
and evidence suggests that fewer people are likely to say
that they are prejudiced.
However, the paper confirms that black and minority
ethnic communities are still experiencing racist abuse
and harassment and that there has been a rise in
anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. Gypsy and traveller
communities still face overt racism and recorded incidents
of racially-aggravated harassment rose by 23 per cent
in 2003/04 to 20,584*.
*British Crime Survey 2003/04
Crime
Crime
Reduction
Reduction
NewsNews
11 11
 SPECIAL
REPORT

RAISING AWARENESS AND

ENCOURAGING REPORTING
HELPS COMMUNITIES TO
PUT A STOP TO RACISM

Raising awareness
R
acial incidents take many forms. Persistent harassment
may continue for months or even years. This may
include verbal abuse, graffiti and criminal damage to
property. Such campaigns of harassment are usually focused
on the victim’s home and the immediate neighbourhood.
Disputes may initially have no racist overtones. A trivial
incident, such as a dispute over a parking space, may involve
racist insults which inflame the situation. More seriously,
racial incidents take the form of random physical assaults.
The experience of racist crime and racial harassment can
take a devastating physical and emotional toll on victims.
Anger, insecurity, stress and depression are common,
especially among people who are experiencing persistent
harassment. Research suggests the impact on victims may
be even greater than that of other crimes.
Racial harassment can produce conflict between members
of the family and create social isolation. For example, friends
may no longer visit, while victims are often afraid to leave
their home unattended. It can force victims to deny their
children the freedom to play, and it can damage the physical
and emotional health of all members of the household.
Families may live in a state of siege in their own home.
Encouraging incident reporting
One of the problems in tackling racist incidents is
under-reporting. The British Crime Survey found that
over 50 per cent of people from Caribbean and South Asian
communities were not reporting racist harassment to
the police. Reasons for not reporting a racist crime include:
● Suspicion that the incident will not be taken seriously
● Belief that the agency will not be able to take
effective action
● Fear of reprisal if the perpetrator finds out that
the incident has been reported to the authorities
● Ignorance of the best organisation to contact, or
the best person to talk to within the organisation.
One weapon in combating this situation is raising
awareness of how and where to report racial incidents.
Over 50 per cent Providing practical advice makes potential victims and
of people from witnesses aware of local support services and encourages
Caribbean and South the reporting of racist incidents to relevant agencies. It
also challenges racist attitudes and raises awareness of the
Asian communities
impact of racist crime and harassment. It can also deter
were not reporting perpetrators by publicising the fact that action will be
racist harassment taken, and result in prosecutions and evictions.

! Key points Raising awareness makes potential victims and witnesses aware of local support services and
encourages reporting of racist incidents to agencies | Increased reporting allows for mapping of racist incident
hotspots. Resources can then be targeted effectively which helps to identify perpetrators, protect victims and reduce
incident numbers | Victim and witness information packs facilitate the reporting of racially-motivated incidents
and reassure victims and witnesses that organisations listed will take reports seriously and take effective action

12 Crime Reduction News

 CASE STUDIES

COMMUNITY SAFETY BRIGHTON

Linda Beanlands is the community safety manager for
Brighton and Hove City Council’s community safety
team. The team works to tackle racially-motivated
crime in a number of ways, providing a casework
service, policy work on increasing reporting levels,
arrests, prosecution and conviction rates, as well as
looking at reporting procedures.
Part of Beanlands’ job involves working with the local
Racial Harassment Forum and other local voluntary-
sector partners to develop a common reporting system
for racial incidents. She says: “Reports are kept on a
central database to enable us to analyse trends, giving
us information on what’s happening.” 9pm on a Friday and Saturday night, we can then advise
Analysing those trends helps to target hotspots and students on how to report incidents by giving talks at
ensure preventative measures are taken. Beanlands local EFL (English as a Foreign Language) schools.
says: “For example, if there are a number of reports of We are better able to assess the range of needs and
harassment against foreign students and they peak at identify a range of solutions.”

DON’T SUFFER IN SILENCE, KIRKLEES

Set up in spring 2003, The Don’t Suffer in Silence
website at www.kirkleeshateincidents.co.uk lists hate
incident reporting centres in the community such as the
police, community groups and housing organisations
and provides support materials, such as downloadable
posters, and an online reporting system.
People are encouraged to report hate incidents,
anonymously if need be. Darren Hackett, Harassment
Office (Hate Incidents) for Kirklees Neighbourhood
Housing (Council Housing), says: “Anonymous reporting
may provide valuable information. A single report
examined with other information helps us build up a
picture.” That picture could help police identify a loca- website and the local helpline which offers advice in
tion or perpetrator, target a hotspot or lead to an arrest. nine different languages. The campaign has been
Hackett says: “We now have 54 reporting centres extended to include Citizens Advice Bureaux, buses,
covering 30 different organisations. Last year we had a 61 council buildings and the Race Equality Council.
per cent rise in reporting on council house estates alone Kirklees Police has also been involved in a pilot
to some 331 incidents. This year it has dropped. In the scheme to use a bulletin board and information page
first quarter of 2004 to 2005 we have had less than 50 on the local cable television network. This is used to
incidents reported, which we hope is because we have encourage people to report racial incidents and provide
made clear that such incidents will not be tolerated.” useful contacts. It’s part of the wider community infor-
The advertising campaign includes pocket cards and mation pages on the network, which appear
roller banners – these aim to make people aware of the as text pages twice a day for 20 minutes at a time.

! Contact For police good practice on investigating racist incidents see Association of Chief Police Officers Guide
To Identifying and Combating Hate Crime at http://www.acpo.police.uk/policies/index.html | For local authority
good practice on investigating racist incidents see http://www.RaceActionNet | For the national Racial Harassment
Organisation visit www.racialharassment.org.uk | The Crime Reduction toolkit on racist incident and harassment
is at http://www.crimereduction.gov.uk/toolkits/rh00.htm| | True Vision is at www.report-it.org.uk

Crime Reduction News 13

 SPECIAL
REPORT
Tackling community tensions
NEW INITIATIVES ARE IN PLACE TO HELP MIXED COMMUNITIES LIVE IN HARMONY
errorist incidents abroad and recent
T
police operations in the UK have raised
concerns about the unfair association
of Muslims with terrorism. The Association
of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) saw this as
an opportunity to make sure the police
develop their relationships with Muslim
communities and gain greater insight into
their needs and concerns.
Working with the Muslim Safety Forum,
ACPO launched the police National
Community Tension Team (NCTT) in
January 2004. Funded by the Home Office,
the NCTT is an ACPO unit which aims to
ensure that police are informed of tensions
that may affect communities across the UK.
Superintendent David Tucker is
co-ordinator of the NCTT. He says the
organisation is attempting to collate
intelligence from around the UK and
predict how that might affect community
tension. He says: “Community tension can
 Contact The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) ww.acpo.police.uk | The Monitoring Group
www.monitoring-group.co.uk
14 Crime Reduction News
manifest itself in a number of ways, most
frequently in fear of crime, public disorder
or types of crime such as hate crime.”
The NCTT has an international focus,
too. It considers events such as the Israeli-
Palestinian conflict and how that might
manifest itself as anti-Semitism in the UK.
The NCTT has designed a diagnostic
assessment tool which evaluates received
intelligence and helps police anticipate
potential responses. It covers: experience –
what a community thinks and feels;
evidence – what has been reported by and
to the police; and potential – what might
develop in terms of risk and likelihood.
Intelligence is then passed on to police forces,
the Home Office and other relevant agencies
such as the Commission for Racial Equality.
Tucker says: “We are agents for change.
We want community intelligence to be
regarded in the same way as criminal
intelligence to drive police deployments.”
CLAMPING DOWN
ON RURAL RACISM
Racially-motivated crimes aren’t just
confined to big cities. They occur in rural
areas, too. The Rural Racism Project brings
together The Monitoring Group (TMG), a
charitable organisation that provides free
advocacy and support to victims of racial
harassment, with other voluntary sector
and statutory agencies.
The initiative came in response to
demand from callers who reported being
subjected to racist abuse on a daily basis
yet, despite reporting their suffering, had
received no support from anyone.
TGM identifies four main reasons why the
problem of rural racism is ignored:
● A denial of the existence of ethnic or
minority groups in rural areas
● A ‘colour blind’ attitude that fails
to acknowledge diverse needs
● A belief in rural areas that racist violence
is an urban problem
● A lack of support and consultative
structures for minority groups.
TMG project manager Ratna Lachman
says: “The urban manifestation of racism is
different from that in rural areas – the ‘no
problems here’ attitude continues.” Rural
racism, she says, is characterised by
isolation, marginalisation, invisibility and a
deficit of social and community networks.
TMG has developed a volunteer network
in the South West and now receives
referrals from other agencies such as Race
Equality Councils, Citizens Advice Bureaux,
refugee and gypsy support groups and
local churches.
The Rural Racism Project is pioneering a
range of specialist services to deliver an
innovative programme of victim-support
services for individuals, families and
isolated community groups situated within
Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset.

Take action on racism
An online partnership network is keeping anti-racism at the
cutting edge. Lemos&Crane partner Gerard Lemos explains
aceActionNet is an
R online action network of
organisations tackling racial
harassment, race hate crime and
anti-social behaviour. Launched
in 2001 and managed by
Lemos&Crane, its membership now
has over 3,000 representatives from
police services, housing associations,
local authorities, the Crown
Prosecution Service (CPS), National
Probation Service, and community
and voluntary groups.
Members keep at the forefront
of the latest policy, legislation and
practice through regular e-bulletins,
access to action examples and
frameworks, and shared practical
advice through an online discussion
forum. As well as providing material
on tackling anti-social behaviour in
social housing and the duty to
promote race equality, the website
has specific knowledge on dealing
with perpetrators of racial harassment
and race crime and on supporting
victims, witnesses and communities.
The ‘Perpetrators’ section covers
how to identify different types of
perpetrator, investigate incidents, take
legal action (both civil and criminal)
and work with offenders. There are
also regular commentaries on racially
motivated incident cases that have
been sentenced at court.
The section ‘Victims, Witnesses,
Communities’ looks at the problems
practitioners are facing, such as repeat
Isolation, small minority ethnic communities
and under-reporting of incidents can lead
agencies working in rural areas to believe
that racial harassment is not a problem
 Contact For more information on RaceActionNet and to find out how to join, visit: www.raceactionnet.co.uk
A free trial option is available.
victimisation, witness intimidation,
and the needs and confidence of
victims and witnesses. Responding to,
reporting and recording hate crime,
multi-agency working, and supporting
witnesses is also covered in addition to
research and guidance into community
engagement and cohesion.
Setting a good example
The website features over 60
exclusive action examples, such as
Redbridge REC’s support of victims
through the RACE Project. This
involves a Community Witness
Support Scheme where witnesses
are visited at home by staff, a Legal
Support Network where solicitors offer
advice to victims in harassment cases,
and Outreach Surgeries where a case-
worker engages ‘hard to reach’
communities to give advice.
Take the example of Amber Valley
Community Safety Partnership. Local
organisations developed a partnership
to tackle the problem of harassment
of local Asian shopkeepers: the Asian
residents established a community
group, the council organised a
community cultural event, and the
Partnership developed initiatives
such as target hardening, engaging
local school children, and encouraging
reporting of crime.
Isolation, small minority ethnic
communities, and under reporting
of incidents can lead agencies working
in rural areas to believe that racial
COMMENT
harassment is not a problem. Victim
Support Powys in rural Wales
established a countrywide Racial
Awareness Helpline. In a six-month
period, they received over 100 calls
and gave direct help to 65 people.
In addition, they established better
working methods with statutory
agencies, offered training on racism
to staff, provided a minority ethnic
support network, and organised an
annual conference on diversity.
A framework for change
These examples show that much is
happening across the UK to tackle
race hate crime. Policy frameworks
for all sectors are also in place – such
as the CPS’s policy on racial and
religious crime.
Organisations now need to learn
from other sectors: community safety
practitioners from probation officers
to help understand the motivation
behind perpetrator behaviour;
criminal justice agencies from the
work of social landlords to prepare
for prosecution when an Anti-Social
Behaviour Order (ASBO) is breached.
Ultimately, racist behaviour must
be prevented in the first place. Much
more work is needed to understand
what actions local agencies and
institutions can take to generate
tolerance and mutual interest
between different groups of people
living together and that deter
intolerance, tension, and hostility.
Crime Reduction News 15
 FEATURE
Calling time on violent
crime
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tate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum
16 Crime Reduction News
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit,
sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet
dolore magna aliquam erat volutpat. Ut wisi enim ad
minim veniam, quis nostrud exerci tation ullamcorper
suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
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tate velit esse molestie consequat, vel illum dolore eu
feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accumsan et iusto odio
dignissim qui blandit praesent luptatum zzril delenit augue
duis dolore te feugait nulla facilisi. Lorem ipsum dolor sit
amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam nonummy
nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet dolore magna aliquam
erat volutpat.
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tation ullamcorper suscipit lobortis nisl ut aliquip ex ea
commodo consequat. Duis autem vel eum iriure dolor in
hendrerit in vulputate velit esse molestie consequat, vel
illum dolore eu feugiat nulla facilisis at vero eros et accum-
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sed diam nonummy nibh euismod tincidunt ut laoreet
TOUGH NEW MEASURES WILL DELIVER A BLOW TO DOMESTIC
AND INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE. NIGEL STANLEY REPORTS
iolent crime always hits the headlines and gives
V the general public cause for alarm. To properly
understand the nature of violent crime in today’s
society a range of research studies has been undertaken
to assess the nature and levels of violent criminality.
Based on this research, initiatives are being developed
to tackle the problem at source.
A key area of research is interpersonal crime. A major
Home Office Research Study published in June 2004
entitled ‘Domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking:
Findings from the British Crime Survey’ shows the results
of a survey of 22,462 men and women aged 16-59 covering
domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. The
computerised questionnaire formed part of the British
Crime Survey (BCS) and asked respondents to detail
their experiences of these crimes.
Reliable evidence
The 146-page report provides the single most reliable
findings to date on the nature and extent of interpersonal
violence in England and Wales, both inside and outside the
home. The findings highlight key issues:
● 64 per cent of women and 94 per cent of men subjected
to domestic violence in the last year did not think what
happened to them was a crime
● 36 per cent of people experienced some form of
domestic violence, sexual victimisation or stalking. A
minority, who are mostly women, will suffer multiple
attacks, severe injury and serious disruption to their
lives with 4 per cent of women and 2 per cent of men
subject to non-sexual domestic violence in 2003.
In the worst cases of domestic violence against women,
the police had arrested the offender 21 per cent of the
time and sent him to court 10 per cent of the time.
Of the minority of women that had used the service,
68 per cent were fairly or very satisfied and 31 per cent
a bit or very dissatisfied.
To deal with this problem the Domestic Violence, Crime
and Victims Bill entered the House of Commons for the
first time on 14 June 2004. Designed to provide the biggest
overhaul of domestic violence legislation in 30 years, the
Bill will also announce new measures to compensate and
support victims of crime. These measures include:
● Making wider use of court compensation orders
● Making offenders pay compensation towards victims
● Forcing criminals that commit anti-social behaviour to
pay back their communities by adding a surcharge onto
convictions and fixed penalties for criminal offences
● Giving the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
the right to recover money from offenders.
Home Secretary David Blunkett said: “I feel proud and
privileged to bring forward this legislation. These reforms
are long overdue. The effect of crime on the lives of its
victims can be devastating. Victims and witnesses need
support, and I am committed to ensuring that they get it.”
Delivering change
The fight against violent crime is continuing with the Crime
Reduction Delivery Board having commissioned a strategy
to investigate the problem and draw up an action plan.
“The effect of
Available research shows that the nature of violent crime crime on the
is changing with more violence in public places, especially lives of its
around the night-time economy. Over 40 per cent of all
violence involves a stranger, alcohol is a factor in nearly 50 victims can be
per cent of incidents and there is growing involvement of devastating.
those aged under 25.
In March the Crime Reduction Delivery Board agreed Victims and
to prioritise violent anti-social behaviour, alcohol-related witnesses need
violence, domestic violence and gun crime with a new
violent crime action plan. support, and I
The new Prolific and Priority Offenders Strategy (detailed am committed
on page 9) should address these violent offenders in the
areas where they are seen as a local priority.
to ensuring that
Visit: www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs04/hors276.pdf they get it”
SOMEONE CARES: THE MOVIE
Domestic violence affects all members of a family and children are often the
first to see and suffer from the consequences of violent behaviour in the home.
To help address this difficult topic, students at Thornhill School in Sunderland
have created a 12-minute docudrama featuring a tale of domestic violence and
the escalation of family rows that leads to physical violence and financial hurt.
This is an everyday story of tension in a home that many children will recognise.
Sharon Kane, Sunderland City Council’s Domestic Violence Policy Coordinator
worked with the students to produce the DVD which was premiered in early July.
Alan Brown, Regional Crime Reduction Director for the North East, said: “The
young people who have taken part in this project should be proud of themselves.
Domestic violence is a difficult subject to tackle, but these pupils have told an
important story in a way that will leave a lasting impression.
“The lessons in ‘Someone Cares’ will benefit young people, teachers and
youth workers. In fact, anyone who works with children will gain insight into
the profound effects of domestic violence and ways to break the cycle.”
Crime Reduction News 17
 FEATURE

Designed
to stop crime
GOOD PRODUCT AND ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN CAN
KEEP CRIMINALS AT BAY. CAROL KING FINDS OUT HOW
INTELLIGENT DESIGN IS HELPING TO CUT CRIME

G ood design can help to discourage crime.

In April 2004, the Home Office and the
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister
jointly published ‘Safer Places: The Planning
System and Crime Prevention’, a guide to
encourage planners, architects and developers
to pay greater attention to crime-prevention
principles to make streets, homes, parks and
other developments safer places. The
Government is also looking at how design
can help reduce acquisitive crime.
Steven Wilkes, head of the Burglary Section
of the Home Office’s Acquisitive Crime Team,
says: “The Home Office is embarking on a new
programme of work to make it harder, riskier
and less profitable for thieves to use and dispose
of stolen goods. For example, the Home Office is
engaging with the manufacturing, retail and
insurance industries, the Consumer Association,
the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO)
and others to promote the development of,
and demand for, more secure products.’’
A partnership approach is helping to tackle
the growing problem of mobile phone crime.
The Street Crime Action Team has been working
with the mobile phone industry for two years
and manufacturers have signed up to an action
plan designed to make mobile phones less
attractive to robbers.
The Government is also reaching out to the
design community through the Design Against
Crime (DAC) national programme of research

DESIGNING OUT CRIME ON PUBLIC TRANSPORT

The Department of
Transport is focused on
implementing good
design to help reduce
specific public transport
safety problems at
railway stations, bus
stations, car parks and
the underground.
Following the success-
ful examples of the
Washington DC Metro
and the remedial design
measures introduced at
the Manhattan Port
Authority Bus Terminal in
the US in the early 1990s
(see www.crimereduc-
tion.gov.uk/toolkits/pt030
301.htm), partnership and
accreditation schemes
have been developed in
the UK to assist and
encourage best practice:
Public art: as seen at West
Midlands Centro’s bus, rail
and metro systems.
Safer Stations schemes:
set up in 1998 as a national
accreditation scheme for
rail stations, the scheme
allows train operating
companies to achieve
accreditation for stations
that meet certain design
and management criteria,
such as demonstrating
acceptable levels of
perceived safety and
effective management of
crime problems. The
scheme encourages rail
operators to work with
local agencies to enhance
passengers’ perceptions
of safety around stations.
Secured Car Park Award
Scheme: operating since
1992 and launched by the
Association of Chief Police
Officers. The scheme is
now administered by
the British Parking
Association. The
scheme provides
for the certification
of car parks that meet
certain design and
management criteria,
as determined by a site
inspection by a police
officer and a surveyor.
The scheme provides
car park management
with a series of
guidelines for self-
assessment, which
outline good practice in
designing and managing
car parks.

! Key points Too often crime reduction features are only incorporated after a particular product or service has
attracted the attention of criminals. Imaginative and often simple design solutions can help to limit the opportunities
for crime and disorder | The British burglar’s top five targets are (in descending order): cash; jewellery; CDs, DVDs,
tapes and videos; credit cards and cheque books; and purses and wallets. New favourites are mobile phones, computer
equipment, i-pods and car keys | Consumers are demanding greater security in products in some areas, such as
vehicles | Businesses have found that increasing the crime resistance of their products, by designing them to be
harder to steal or vandalise, can become a strong differentiator and is highly marketable

20 Crime Reduction News


and policy initiatives. Caroline Davey, senior
research fellow at the University of Salford,
worked on the DAC ‘Think Thief’ guide to
how design can be used to combat thieves
and criminals. She says: ‘We aimed to raise
awareness across design disciplines such as
interiors, product design and communications.
Design can have an influence on crime. It’s all
about opportunity. If people see an opportunity
to commit a crime, some take it. If you make it
harder then you reduce that opportunity.”
A range of other Design Against Crime
activities and resources has been developed
under the programme, including a collection of
case studies and a range of teaching materials for
design and technology students.
The Think Thief report, published by the
Design Council in January 2004, has been sent to
design professionals, universities and Police
Architectural Liaison Officers across the UK. The
latter work alongside ACPO in promoting Secured
by Design Police Preferred Specification licences.
Secured by Design is the UK police flagship
initiative supporting the principles of designing
out crime by use of effective crime prevention and
security standards for a range of applications,
from doors and locks to windows and property
marking. Research shows that implementation
of Secured by Design measures can reduce
burglary and car crime by 50 per cent and
criminal damage by 25 per cent.
Under new legislation, which is expected to
receive Royal Assent in the autumn, it will become
possible to set minimum security standards for
new houses as part of the building regulations.
“It’s all about
Thinking for the future
opportunity. Designing out crime requires designers of
If people see an the future to prioritise thinking about crime
prevention. The Royal Society of Arts, together
opportunity to with the Home Office, introduced a new category,
commit a crime, Less Crime Through Design, into its Student
Design Awards. Students were encouraged to
some take it. If design with potential crime as a dominant issue.
you make it This year the project was an opportunity
for students from a number of disciplines to
harder, then you examine how the problem of anti-social and
reduce the criminal behaviour in hospital A&E departments
opportunity” could be addressed through a design-led
approach. The challenge for students was to
ensure that their designs anticipated the potential
for crime. Their design solutions needed to
be user friendly but ‘abuser unfriendly’.
 Contact British Chambers of Commerce survey ‘Setting Business Free from Crime’
www.crimereduction.gov.uk/ business35.htm | Crime Prevention Through Design – RSA Design Directions Awards
www.crimereduction.gov.uk/awards.htm and www.rsa-design.net/directions/awards/special_awards.htm|
Crime Through Design award winners at www.rsa-design.net/directions/2003-04/exh/awards.htm|
Crime ‘Think Thief’ report is available from the Design Council on 020 7420 5286 | Designing Out Crime on Public
Transport www.crimereduction.gov.uk/toolkits/pt030301.htm| | Safer Places: The Planning System and Crime
Prevention www.crimereduction.gov.uk/activecommunities61.htm| | Secured by Design www.securedbydesign.com
Case studies
TESCO: WE CAN SEE YOU
British shops lose £2.2 billion a year from theft (by
staff and customers) and criminal damage, and spend
an additional £600 million on crime prevention. These
costs get passed on to the consumer: they amount to
£100 on each household’s annual shopping bill.
Tesco, the UK’s largest retailer, knows the
problem well. The chain hired Greg Lawrence,
an ex-policeman, to help prevent and discourage
shoplifters. His brief was clear: cut crime, but don’t
harm the takings.
Greg recommended a range of changes to the
in-store layout and display design, including wider
aisles with longer sightlines, lower shelving units
and cul-de-sacs in areas used as escape routes, to
undermine the thief’s sense of anonymity and ability
to escape.
Tesco has felt the benefits. The extra focus on crime
prevention has made customers and staff feel more
secure. They like the more open environment, as the
rate of repeat visits shows, and crime levels have
fallen. Designing against crime is now a major part of
the Tesco Security Strategy and is woven into their
property planning and construction process.
ALPHABAR: A GLASS ACT
Max Perez is the managing director of AlphaBar,
a company based in the north west of England
that sells glassware to licensed premises.
In 1993 he witnessed a serious assault that
made him think again about the products he
sold – intruders at a wedding used a broken pint
glass and beer bottle to viciously stab a bouncer
and slash the wrist of a female guest. Perez also
suffered facial cuts during the incident.
As a result of the incident, he started to look into
toughened glass, which increases impact resistance
by five times or more. He says: “Glasses are easy to
grab. You’ve got to make them safer.”
Perez also started working with the local police
and the Manchester Evening News on a campaign
to use toughened glass, and soon acquired lots of
customers in the region’s pubs, clubs and bars.
It also had benefits for Perez’s business. Since
switching to toughened glass his turnover increased
by 15 per cent. In February 2001 the Manchester
Evening News ran the satisfying headline: ‘Glassing
attacks are down to zero’.
“You’ll never prevent all of crime but there’s a
responsibility to contribute what you can,” says
Perez. “It’s part of an education process regarding
the effects of drinking.”
| Less
| Design Against
Crime Reduction News 21
NEWS

news
VOLUNTEER

A ROUND-UP OF NEWS, EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES FROM

THE VOLUNTARY SECTOR AROUND THE COUNTRY

Ferrers Trophy
a Special occasion
A divisional officer with the
Special Constabulary in
Cheshire has been named
the winner of the 2004
Ferrers Trophy award.
Home Office minister
Fiona MacTaggart, who
attended last month’s
ceremony at Church House
in London, described
Divisional Officer Adrian
Dodd (right) as, “an
exceptional all-round
Special Constable.”
MacTaggart told the
audience: “Judges were
struck by his contribution
to topical policing areas
and very impressed with
his ability to work both
tactically and strategically.
“Mr Dodd demonstrated
a natural ability to lead
which he has combined
with a high standard of
professional knowledge.”
DO Dodd said he was
thrilled to receive the award
and paid tribute to the
support of his force: “I am
just doing my bit. I don’t
think I’ve done anything
special. I enjoy being a
Special immensely and
the award is testimony to
the encouragement and
mentoring I had when I
joined. If I hadn’t had that
I might not be here today.”
DO Dodd picked up
the prestigious award in
the face of stiff competition.
MacTaggart told the
audience: “The high
standard of nominations
is testament to Specials’
continuing commitment
to and impact on their
communities throughout
the country. The judging
panel considered this
year’s competition to
be one of the closest
in the history of the
Ferrers Trophy.”
Sir Keith Povey, Her
Majesty’s Chief Inspector
of Constabulary, and
Chris Fox, President of
the Association of Chief
Officers of England, Wales
and Northern Ireland, were
among the judges for the
12th annual awards.

“Mr Dodd demonstrated a natural ability to

lead which he has combined with a high
standard of professional knowledge”

22 Crime Reduction News

 A sporting chance
England football stars took time out of their hectic
Euro 2004 preparations in June to deliver a cheque
for £500,000 to help young people stay off drugs.
Positive Futures, a Home Office programme that
helps young people from deprived neighbourhoods into
jobs through training and education, received a cheque
from Sport England for £500,000. The cash will go
towards equipping all adults working with vulnerable
young people with the necessary knowledge and skills
to help the youths find work.
Home Office minister Caroline Flint said: “Keeping
young people away from drugs and crime is central to
UK’s best neighbour the Government’s Drug Strategy. Positive Futures is
helping young people address the many issues
associated with substance misuse and supporting
The search for the best neighbour in Britain ended this month with the them into education, training and employment.”
announcement that a 20 year-old from Tayside in Scotland had been Sven Goran Eriksson, the England team’s manager,
awarded the prize. Jamie Sloan (above, centre), who is also training for said: “Football can be a powerful way of reaching and
the Special Olympics next year in Glasgow, beat off stiff competition helping young people and Positive Futures is
from thousands of entries to be crowned Britain’s Best Neighbour at a doing just that.”
glittering ceremony followed by a reception at the House of Commons Roger Draper, Sport England chief
on July 22. Sloan won the top prize of a family holiday of a lifetime executive said he was delighted that
worth £5,000 plus a further £1,000 cash for his regional win. Sport England was involved in the
Sloan was nominated by neighbour Marie Campbell, who said: ground-breaking project. “Our
“Jamie is a special person. Due to my own disabilities, I find it difficult investment will help to ensure
to do many jobs around the house and Jamie is always willing and its future success – improving
eager to give me a hand. Not only that, he pops in for a cup of tea and training and extending its
a chat every day and keeps an eye on what is going on in the street.” benefits to more and
Sloan was amazed to hear the news. “When I heard that I had won more youngsters.”
the national prize I couldn’t believe it!” The Positive Futures
John Howell, Director General of the NNWA said: “Being a good programme has
neighbour isn’t just about saying hello on the garden path on the already helped 50,000
way to work, it’s about making an extra effort. I would like to offer my youngsters aged
warmest congratulations to Jamie for winning this prestigious award 10-19 since 2000.
plus the other nine regional finalists and, indeed, everyone who Football accounts
entered for their outstanding contributions for two thirds of
to their communities.” Positive Future’s
The Britain’s Best Neighbour award is sponsored by the National sports activities
Neighbourhood Watch Association (NNWA) and home shopping programme.
company Kleeneze.

Local heroes’ time to shine ACTION

Unsung heroes of the
voluntary sector were
honoured last month with
the announcement of the
winners of the prestigious
Queen’s Award for
Voluntary Service. More
than 100 volunteer groups
across the UK were chosen
to receive the award in
recognition of the vital
role they play.
Winners ranged from
Manchester’s Mothers
Against Violence to the
Powys Challenge, a Welsh
entry working to reduce
crime and the fear of crime.
Fiona MacTaggart,
Minister for the Voluntary
and Community Sector
said: “This is well deserved
recognition for some of
the hundreds of thousands
of unsung heroes who are
active day in, day out in
our communities. Their
engagement in their
communities empowers
individuals, bonds local
communities and enriches
the nation. We owe all of
our volunteer groups an
enormous debt and it is
appropriate that their work
is being recognised during
More than 100 volunteer groups across
the UK were chosen to receive the award
the National Volunteer
Week. I hope people will
now think ahead and give
groups that are making a
difference the recognition
they deserve by nominating
them for 2005 awards.”
Entries for the 2004/5
awards are now open.
Groups must be nominated
by the public. Obtain entry
forms from www.queen-
sawardvoluntary.gov.uk
or call 0845 000 2002.
Closing date for entries
is 30 September 2004.
ON RACISM
Over 3,000 people have already joined ‘RaceActionNet’,
an organisation that offers practical online advice on
tackling racial harassment in the home and community
neighbourhoods. The organisation’s 2004 conference
will be held in central London in October and will
give its members the opportunity to hear how public
organisations tackle racial harassment, race hate
crime and anti-social behaviour.
Representatives from housing, local government and
policing are expected to attend the conference. Nick
Hardwick, chair of the Independent Police Complaints
Commission, will chair a question and answer session.
Baroness Helena Kennedy QC will award the 2004
Raceactionnet awards to the most innovative examples of
dealing with perpetrators of racism, supporting victims
and delivering organisational excellence.
For more information on becoming a member or the
forthcoming conference visit www.raceactionnet.co.uk

Crime Reduction News 23

NEWS

dates
7-9 September
Problem Oriented Partnerships Conference
Location: Birmingham
Conference aims: This popular annual conference,
jointly organised by the Home Office, Cleveland
Previous issue
To obtain copies of back issues of CRN
call 0870 241 4680, fax 0870 241 4786 or
email homeoffice@prolog.uk.com
Please give your name, address and job title, as
Police, Merseyside Police and Centrex, provides well as specifying which issue you would like.
practical answers for crime reduction practitioners
searching for sustainable ways to reduce crime and
disorder. The conference will also offer a broad range of JUNE 2004
workshops demonstrating problem oriented crime reduction in practice. ● Alcohol and crime – tackling
For bookings or for more details of the Problem Oriented Partnerships the rise in alcohol-fuelled
Conference visit www.crimereduction.gov.uk/tilley2004. street crime
Alternatively, request an electronic copy by emailing ● Partnership power – the
ukpop_conference@centrex.pnn.police.uk importance of working with
community partners

11-17 October
Inside Justice Week
● Organised crime – tough
new measures to stamp
out organised crime
Location: Nationwide ● Women offenders – the
Inside Justice Week is a week of national and reduction of female
regional promotional activity, providing various prisoners in focus
opportunities to explore the workings of the
Criminal Justice System (CJS). The aim is to MARCH 2004
generate public interest and understanding of the ● Community empowerment –
CJS and to show how our work helps to create stronger, safer communities. Local The importance of enabling
Criminal Justice Boards around the country are putting on events, opening up communities to confront crime
workplaces and inviting schools, local media and local people to experience the ● Anti-social behaviour – the
work of the CJS. Among other activities, visitors will have the opportunity to take latest tools and measures to
part in mock trials, have their fingerprints taken and to ride in a police car. combat anti-social behaviour
Supporting information and a list of regional activities are available on ● Child protection – How to
www.cjsonline.org. Contact Laura Owen on 020 7273 4510 or email keep kids away from
laura.owen4@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk for more information. Internet dangers
● Technology – how it can make

21 October
Improving Confidence in Justice Conference
the police ten times more likely
to make an arrest

Location: QEII Conference Centre, London OCTOBER 2003

This year’s Annual Criminal Justice Management ● CCTV – how applying an
Conference presents a full programme focussing effective CCTV scheme
on four key themes: Building Safer Communities, can help reduce crime
Removing Barriers to Joint Working, Delivery ● Fear of crime – keeping
Through Best Practice and Improving Confidence. communities informed can
For full details visit www.govnet.co.uk/cjm reduce the fear of crime
● Local tension – solutions
to community clashes

 Contact If you have been involved in a project that

● Statistics – the role of
statistics in crimereduction
other practitioners could learn from, please get in touch.
Email us at: crimereductionnews@justcomm.net or Back issues are also available online.
Visit www.crimereduction. gov.uk/crn.htm
write to us at: Crime Reduction News,
76-80 Southwark Street,
London SE1 0PN