Crime Reduction Toolkits: Repeat Victimisation

The British Crime Survey

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CRIME/DISORDER/ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR DATA & GENERAL DATA FOR PROFILING & ANALYSIS

Source

Type of Data

What it will tell you

Points to note

Developmental issues

Police
Crime incidents
Offender information
Victim Information
Command & Control data on non crime incidents

Time, location, type of offences reported to the police
Known offenders by age, ethnicity, address
Time, location, type of non-crime offences reported to the police (around 70% of calls)
Levels of reporting vary by crime type
Offenders often unknown
Only covers calls to the police
Crime/anti-social behaviour methods rarely documented
Inconsistent reporting

Repeat victimisation recording systems need to be developed

Seasonal pattern systems need to be developed & used

Police Authority
Public surveys Perceptions of safety and fear of crime Unlikely to be at detailed level Fear of crime & anti-social behaviour will need to be tracked

Local Authority Housing Department/

Registered Social Landlords
Housing voids
Criminal damage costs
Neighbourhood Complaints
Vandalism records
Racial/homophobicincidents
Reasons for transfer applications
Records of neighbour disputes/ complaints
Stock turnover
Evictions, injunctions, relating to anti-social behaviour
Costs of crime to social landlords
Likely to cover high crime neighbourhoods
Local unease & experience of crime, disorder/anti-social behaviour & quality of life issues
Location & nature of main anti-social behaviour problems
Identify unpopular areas possibly entering spiral of decline
Identify areas with lack of housing demand
No data on costs of crime/anti-social behaviour to private landlords & owner-occupiers
Misses those who don't know it's worth complaining
Incident logging systems often incomplete
Hard to obtain information for properties where landlord pays bills but tenants move in & out
Completeness of Electoral Register not always good
Inconsistent capture of data
Past inadequacies - need to increase confidence

Local Authority Social Services Department
Information on vulnerable groups (e.g. elderly, people with disabilities, mentally ill, child protection)
Children in care/leaving care
Information on young offenders
Where to find groups who may be victims of crime (e.g. the elderly, the mentally ill)
Understanding of offender behaviour
Complements police data
Concentrates on the most vulnerable & offenders known to Social Services by age, gender, ethnicity, area where they live Data might not be easy to analyse

Local Education Authority
Exclusions
Truancy
Schools where high percentage of pupils are out of school
Risk factors for offending or being victimised
Complements police data
Need to establish nature of link between non-attendance anti-social behaviour/ disorder & crime locally
schools can be sensitive about the release of exclusion data
Patchy recording

Individual Schools
Experience of discipline Local attitudes What the school is doing to help Involvement of young people in youth action groups is essential

Local Authority Environmental Services
Neighbour disputes
Refuse collection problems
Health and safety problems
Grants for safety improvements
Noise nuisance
Identify 'hot spots'
Will complement police and housing data
Only covers calls to council Inconsistent reporting & recording

Local Authority Highways and Street Lighting
Location of traffic accidents
Requests for lighting
Safety 'hot spots'
Simple indicator of where fear of crime is greatest
Only partial picture Inconsistent reporting, recording
May be difficult to collate

Local Authority 'Centre' (Chief Exec./Policy Unit)
Census data analysis
Needs analysis for external grants
Records of crime/ anti-social behaviour against staff
Provides local context
Allows links to be made to 'risk factors' for offending
Some areas need to develop skills in re-aggregating data to match new boundaries

Local Authority Planning Department
Planning maps
Previous area-based work
Forthcoming developments
Work for SRB bids, etc
Census data
Land use, including dereliction, recreational & business
Can help to display data
Identifies any changes planned in the environment
Comprehensive indicator of the make-up of an area down to small enumeration districts
Some areas need to develop skills in re-aggregating data to match new boundaries

Probation
Offender profiles (e.g. age, gender, employment status; substance misuse) Perspective on criminal behaviour & its causes
Insight into offender motivation
Responses to intervention
Locates known offenders
Covers only known offenders Data unlikely to be easy to analyse

Health Authority
A&E records of assault and domestic violence
Victims of violence treated in primary care
Mentally disordered offenders
Information on substance misuse e.g. drugs & alcohol
Behaviour Modification attendee numbers
Likely to cover offences not reported to police
Levels of substance abuse, age of users, types of drug, associated risk factors
Sources and locations of injuries not always recorded
Need to establish link between drugs and offending locally
Data unlikely to be easy to analyse
Some health authorities have problems getting trusts to collect or collate required data

District Health Authority
Morbidity data

Drug Action Team
Information on drug-taking/alcohol & substance misuse Should complement police and health substance misuse data Likely to have better understanding of links between drugs & anti-social behaviour/ crime Data unlikely to be easy to analyse

Fire Service
Incidents of arson; hoax calls and suspicious fires Patterns of incidents e.g. time, location, type of incident reported
Complements police data
Some fires go unreported
Little data on offenders

Community Relations Council
Incidents of racial attacks and harassment Patterns of racial crime
Complements police data
Only partial reporting Data unlikely to be easy to analyse
Not all victims report incidents to authorities

All public buildings (e.g. schools, hospitals, libraries and leisure facilities)
Costs of criminal damage and vandalism Where major losses occur
Where investment in prevention could save money
Limited to public buildings Incomplete/inconsistent capture of this information

Chamber of Commerce
Costs of criminal damage and vandalism to private companies Where major crime/anti-social behaviour losses occur
Where investment in prevention could save money
Limited to those who are members of the chamber of commerce Dependent on whether local chamber of commerce has done such work or is aware of work in companies

Chamber of Trade
Costs of retail crime, damage and vandalism

Where major crime/anti-social behaviour losses occur

Limited to those who are members of the chamber of trade Dependent on whether local chamber of trade has done such work or is aware of work in companies

Employment service
Adult /youth unemployment data Indicator of important risk factor Only covers those registered as seeking work Those most at risk of offending may not be registered

Voluntary & other support services

(victim support/gay & lesbian support groups/mediation schemes)
Nature & extent of harassment
Profile of victims
Age, gender, ethnicity, type of offence suffered by victims of crime & disorder Not all victims report incidents to authorities
Information may be difficult to analyse

Source: Auditing Crime and Disorder: Guidance for local partnerships: Crime detection and prevention series, Paper 91: Michael Hough and Nick Tilley (1998)

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/policerpubs1.html

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CRIME/DISORDER/ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR DATA & GENERAL DATA FOR PROFILING & ANALYSIS
Source	Type of Data	What it will tell you		Points to note		Developmental issues
Police	Crime incidents Offender information Victim Information Command & Control data on non crime incidents	Time, location, type of offences reported to the police Known offenders by age, ethnicity, address Time, location, type of non-crime offences reported to the police (around 70% of calls)		Levels of reporting vary by crime type Offenders often unknown Only covers calls to the police Crime/anti-social behaviour methods rarely documented		Inconsistent reporting Repeat victimisation recording systems need to be developed Seasonal pattern systems need to be developed & used
Police Authority	Public surveys	Perceptions of safety and fear of crime		Unlikely to be at detailed level		Fear of crime & anti-social behaviour will need to be tracked
Local Authority Housing Department/ Registered Social Landlords	Housing voids Criminal damage costs Neighbourhood Complaints Vandalism records Racial/homophobicincidents Reasons for transfer applications Records of neighbour disputes/ complaints Stock turnover Evictions, injunctions, relating to anti-social behaviour	Costs of crime to social landlords Likely to cover high crime neighbourhoods Local unease & experience of crime, disorder/anti-social behaviour & quality of life issues Location & nature of main anti-social behaviour problems Identify unpopular areas possibly entering spiral of decline Identify areas with lack of housing demand		No data on costs of crime/anti-social behaviour to private landlords & owner-occupiers Misses those who don't know it's worth complaining Incident logging systems often incomplete Hard to obtain information for properties where landlord pays bills but tenants move in & out Completeness of Electoral Register not always good		Inconsistent capture of data Past inadequacies - need to increase confidence
Local Authority Social Services Department	Information on vulnerable groups (e.g. elderly, people with disabilities, mentally ill, child protection) Children in care/leaving care Information on young offenders	Where to find groups who may be victims of crime (e.g. the elderly, the mentally ill) Understanding of offender behaviour Complements police data		Concentrates on the most vulnerable & offenders known to Social Services by age, gender, ethnicity, area where they live		Data might not be easy to analyse
Local Education Authority	Exclusions Truancy	Schools where high percentage of pupils are out of school Risk factors for offending or being victimised Complements police data		Need to establish nature of link between non-attendance anti-social behaviour/ disorder & crime locally schools can be sensitive about the release of exclusion data		Patchy recording
Individual Schools	Experience of discipline	Local attitudes		What the school is doing to help		Involvement of young people in youth action groups is essential
Local Authority Environmental Services	Neighbour disputes Refuse collection problems Health and safety problems Grants for safety improvements Noise nuisance	Identify 'hot spots' Will complement police and housing data		Only covers calls to council		Inconsistent reporting & recording
Local Authority Highways and Street Lighting	Location of traffic accidents Requests for lighting	Safety 'hot spots' Simple indicator of where fear of crime is greatest		Only partial picture		Inconsistent reporting, recording May be difficult to collate
Local Authority 'Centre' (Chief Exec./Policy Unit)	Census data analysis Needs analysis for external grants Records of crime/ anti-social behaviour against staff	Provides local context Allows links to be made to 'risk factors' for offending				Some areas need to develop skills in re-aggregating data to match new boundaries
Local Authority Planning Department	Planning maps Previous area-based work Forthcoming developments Work for SRB bids, etc Census data Land use, including dereliction, recreational & business	Can help to display data Identifies any changes planned in the environment Comprehensive indicator of the make-up of an area down to small enumeration districts				Some areas need to develop skills in re-aggregating data to match new boundaries
Probation	Offender profiles (e.g. age, gender, employment status; substance misuse)	Perspective on criminal behaviour & its causes Insight into offender motivation Responses to intervention Locates known offenders		Covers only known offenders		Data unlikely to be easy to analyse
Health Authority	A&E records of assault and domestic violence Victims of violence treated in primary care Mentally disordered offenders Information on substance misuse e.g. drugs & alcohol Behaviour Modification attendee numbers	Likely to cover offences not reported to police Levels of substance abuse, age of users, types of drug, associated risk factors		Sources and locations of injuries not always recorded Need to establish link between drugs and offending locally		Data unlikely to be easy to analyse Some health authorities have problems getting trusts to collect or collate required data
District Health Authority	Morbidity data
Drug Action Team	Information on drug-taking/alcohol & substance misuse	Should complement police and health substance misuse data		Likely to have better understanding of links between drugs & anti-social behaviour/ crime		Data unlikely to be easy to analyse
Fire Service	Incidents of arson; hoax calls and suspicious fires	Patterns of incidents e.g. time, location, type of incident reported Complements police data		Some fires go unreported Little data on offenders
Community Relations Council	Incidents of racial attacks and harassment	Patterns of racial crime Complements police data		Only partial reporting		Data unlikely to be easy to analyse Not all victims report incidents to authorities
All public buildings (e.g. schools, hospitals, libraries and leisure facilities)	Costs of criminal damage and vandalism	Where major losses occur Where investment in prevention could save money		Limited to public buildings		Incomplete/inconsistent capture of this information
Chamber of Commerce	Costs of criminal damage and vandalism to private companies	Where major crime/anti-social behaviour losses occur Where investment in prevention could save money		Limited to those who are members of the chamber of commerce		Dependent on whether local chamber of commerce has done such work or is aware of work in companies
Chamber of Trade	Costs of retail crime, damage and vandalism	Where major crime/anti-social behaviour losses occur		Limited to those who are members of the chamber of trade		Dependent on whether local chamber of trade has done such work or is aware of work in companies
Employment service	Adult /youth unemployment data		Indicator of important risk factor		Only covers those registered as seeking work	Those most at risk of offending may not be registered
Voluntary & other support services (victim support/gay & lesbian support groups/mediation schemes)	Nature & extent of harassment Profile of victims		Age, gender, ethnicity, type of offence suffered by victims of crime & disorder		Not all victims report incidents to authorities Information may be difficult to analyse