Evaluated Options: The Graded Response Model
This section sets out an evaluated model for addressing repeat
victimisation called the ‘graded response’. This provides a
framework onto which specific measures need to be added, as outlined
in the previous section on Generating Ideas. (Insert hypertext link
into Generating Ideas section)
The graded response
The graded response to repeat victimisation was developed in the
mid-nineties in a demonstration project with the police in
Huddersfield, West Yorkshire and has been adopted by many police
forces.
It involves grading responses to victims according to the number
of times they have been victimised in the past year, as a way of
allocating resources depending on the level of risk. In the
Huddersfield repeat burglary and car crime project these were set
out as ‘bronze, ‘silver’ and ‘gold’ responses. The model
was subsequently adapted to address domestic violence. The following
tables give examples of the type of intervention, within the
framework of the graded response model.
Click here for bronze, silver and
gold response table
Taken from Biting Back II: Reducing Repeat Victimisation in
Huddersfield by Sylvia Chenery, John Holt and Ken Pease
In general the graded response strategy moves from deflection to
detection of crime. The basic framework of this approach is that:
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Risk of future victimisation is judged on the number of prior
victimisations not on the characteristics of individual victims;
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There is an emphasis on early intervention as effort is seen
as most effective at this stage;
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Within each level (e.g. bronze) the interventions are in the
main familiar and well established. The difference is that they
are used in a strategic and systematic way, so that the most ‘expensive’,
high tech measures are saved for those people most at risk where
the chances of detection are greater;
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It ensures that effort is sustained over time as the problem
becomes more difficult;
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It takes a strategic approach which addresses repeat
victimisation in a systematic and planned way to provide a
consistent service to victims;
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While the levels of intervention are set, there is room for
discretion. For example, if a first crime is particularly nasty
you may want to install an alarm at this stage with a view to
catching the offender.
Applying the graded response to other incidents
The strength of the graded response is that it has a firm set of
principles (above) that can be applied to other incidents types. An
example is a project carried out in Killingbeck, West Yorkshire,
tackling domestic violence. The following table shows the way the
principles were translated into practice for the police.
The Domestic Violence Repeat Victimisation Model
Click here for a diagram of the
model
Taken from Arresting Evidence: Domestic Violence and Repeat
Victimisation by Jalna Hanmer, Sue Griffiths and Dave Jerwood.
Does the graded response work?
The approach in Huddersfield reduced repeat burglary and car
crime. Domestic burglary fell by 30% and theft from vehicles by 20%.
There was also an increase in arrests through the use of alarms from
4 to 14%. To view the project report click on: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/prgpdfs/cdp58.pdf
In the domestic violence project in Killingbeck, the project
reduced victimisation by early intervention: the proportion of
one-off attendances by the police increased from 66% to 85% and the
time interval between attendances increased to over one year for 50%
of men. To view the project report click on: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/prgpdfs/fprs104.pdf
Can this approach be used by agencies other than the police?
Most of the work on repeat victimisation has focused on the
police, and the examples in this toolkit reflect this. However, the
principles of both repeat victimisation and the graded response can
be used by any agency.
In developing a graded response a partnership should be looking
at the range of resources it has available or could develop and
identify:
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What are the least and most costly resources available to
each agency?
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How can these be used in conjunction with each other, within
the bronze, silver and gold categories to:
Make victims less attractive
to offenders;
Discourage offenders, and;
Ensure the presence of
capable guardians
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For the police in Huddersfield less costly resources
included crime prevention literature and marker pens, the loan
of temporary alarms, checks on informants, cocoon watch (a
form of mini-neighbourhood watch). More costly interventions
included Police Watch visits (visits by patrolling police
officers to check on victims) and the installation of
equipment such as covert cameras. Some of these had one
function, for example, to make the victim less attractive to
an offender, while others had several functions. The skill
lies in developing a package which addresses the three factors
above, while reflecting the level of risk for the victim.
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Of course it is important to know the effectiveness of different
interventions, preferably within different circumstances, when
developing the package of interventions.
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