Environment Case Studies

Below are examples of local initiatives. We are not suggesting that they will necessarily work in your location because each area will have different local levers which cause fear of crime.

Case Study 1

Fear of crime is disproportionately high in Croydon compared to the actuality of becoming a victim. As part of their strategy to reduce fear, the council has targeted street lighting and are replacing 27,000 street lights. The modern network of lights is intended to bring substantial improvement to the way Croydon is lit up. By spreading an even white light in every residential area, the new lighting system will eliminate shadows and should make people feel safer when out at night.

Case Study 2

Parks provide safe environments which are used by an estimated 33 million people each year. Actions of a minority can fuel feelings that people do not care about the park and perceptions of crime and anti-social behaviour. Neglected spaces can attract anti-social behaviour and people can be fearful to use parks because the space becomes a magnet for further crime. It is therefore vital to tackle minor issues immediately, such as litter, before it spirals into decline.

There is a range of tools and approaches which can be used to prevent anti-social behaviour in public which can also help to reduce the fear of crime and crime itself. Also try to promote positive behaviour and actions.

• Good design: a well designed park can reduce fear of crime, minimise opportunity for anti-social behaviour and create a place that people want to use.
• Good management and maintenance regimes: people are attracted to well maintained areas with staff providing a reassuring presence.
• A rapid response to vandalism: this sends the message that vandalism will not be tolerated. High standards of care generate respect and local pride.
• Ensure clear sight lines, open vistas and good lighting: these measures will make the park feel safer for all who use it.
• Fully engaged members of the community: also include those who create problems in the park. Managers should find out the concerns of all users and how they would like to use the park.
• Provide positive activities: this should be aimed at those who are caught or perceived to be committing anti-social behaviour acts and they should be given the chance to help design the park and manage a piece of space.

Provide positive activities: this should be aimed at those who are caught or perceived to be committing anti-social behaviour acts and they should be given the chance to help design the park and manage a piece of space

For more information visit http://www.cleanersafergreener.gov.uk.

Case Study 3

Bath has a large residential population with many people living in the city centre. Noise is a major complaint because many traditional Georgian homes open directly onto the street and are close to pubs, bars and clubs which hold post midnight licenses.

When late night entertainment venues closed, many drinkers gathered in the Orange Grove area to get taxis. This had led to serious litter and noise problems as well as numerous violent encounters.

The Bath Doorsafe Partnership debated various solutions and they finally agreed that security staff would be employed to manage the taxis queue. These Taxi Marshalls keep queues in order, help people to find taxis and report and problems to the police.

Case Study 4

An increase in the occurrence of fly-posting on amenities within the Luton area led the council to trial a 6 week project to eradicate posters. The project was so successful when it was reviewed, that it was tweaked slightly and has been running since.

Fly-posters advertising events at local nightclubs were being affixed to amenities and street furniture in the area. Rather than continuously removing the posters and incurring clean up costs, Luton Borough Council decided they needed stronger action to deal with the problem.

The council designed a fluorescent yellow “cancelled” sticker that could be pasted over the fly-poster advertisement. To the public it appeared that the event had been cancelled, thus affecting attendance levels at the event. It also gave a negative impression of the promoter’s ability to host an event. In actuality, the sticker was cleverly worded to cancel itself, it being illegal for the council to appear to cancel the event. After the cancelled stickers remained in place for a number of days, they were removed through the usual cleaning methods.

In each instance event organisers were written to explaining that further fly-posting will result in legal action against them. In several instances the offenders have also been asked to reimburse the council’s clean up costs. The next steps will be to enforce the law and prosecute reoffenders using the Cleaner Neighbourhood legislation. Luton Borough Council has said the campaign has reduced the levels of fly-posting than they are now having little trouble with it. The campaign also received local publicity which supported the approach, therefore reinforcing the message to the public that the council will not tolerate this type of behaviour.

Case Study 5

Pembroke Street Estate is situated in Devonport, an inner city area approximately one mile from Plymouth City Centre. The flats were built in 1955 and by the 1980s a serious spiral of decline had set in where residents had become despondent with their living conditions. Unemployment, crime, vandalism and general neglect of the area had become the norm. Broken glass, bordered up windows and graffiti made the Estate and its surroundings drab and ugly. Crime and the fear of crime had made residents lives a misery with many taking the opportunity to leave the area.

The problems escalated and a small number of residents wanted to tackle these problems, and at the beginning of 1987 the Pembroke Street Residents Association was formed. Two key aims were to focus on crime and the lack of a modernisation programme. Running adjacent to Pembroke Street was another even worse estate, consisting of 102 deck access 1930s flats. It was from this estate that many of the crime problems arose in the Pembroke Street Estate.

After a year of campaigning the Residents Association became disillusioned. Numbers were dropping and the Association lacked a regular meeting place, funding and support. After a chance meeting between a senior housing officer and a couple of committee members, a meeting was set up. The housing officer explained to residents the possibilities of local management, which meant the residents could manage their own budget and decide their own priorities. They decided to take over the management.

A meeting place was needed within the Estate where activities could be organised to engage the whole community. A letter was sent to the Housing Committee requesting permission to rent a flat for community use and also to explore areas of funding. The community flat was approved with the first years rent met by Social Services. The popularity of the community flat was realised with two youth clubs, a mum and toddler group, older people’s group and adult literacy classes.

A link was then made between the resident’s desire to manage the Estate and a government programme called “Estate Action”. If the Residents Association worked with the local authority, the initiative could have meant a total refurbishment package of about £5million. Designers were tasked with developing new layout plans for the estate, but the residents did not like them and a new designer was brought in to develop ideas put forward by the residents.

In July 1992 the final approval for the refurbishment package had been received from the Department of the Environment and approved by the council. As part of the contract residents was local training and employment due to the low-skill level. Under guidance and funding a skills register was set up and local residents were employed to run it. 50 people went through local training with the majority gaining NVQ qualifications.

An Estates Management Board (EMB) was set up, policies and job descriptions developed in consultation with residents. Since the EMB was set up there have been no reported break-ins on the estate. Some activities from the community flat have been extended such as the Youth Project, with funding from “Children in Need” a full time qualified youth worker is employed. Over the years of the community based project, further regeneration has taken place in the wider community leading to proposals to develop an Urban Village with the idea of creating a self-sustaining community. The EMB gained recognition in 1996 by winning a British Urban Regeneration Award. It just goes to show what can be achieved when the community pulls together.