Violent Crime & Street Robbery
Problem solving street crime: Lessons from the Street Crime Initiative
This practice guide draws together and builds on the experience of the Street Crime Initiative and on previous relevant research. It offers practical measures that crime reduction agencies such as the police can use to reduce street crime.
Title: Problem-solving street crime: practical lessons from the Street Crime Initiative
Author: Nick Tilley, Jonathan Smith, Stephen Finer, Rosie Erol, Corrine Charles and John Dobby (Research Development and Statistics)
Date published: November 2004
Number of pages: 106
Availability: Download full report 
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Background
The Street Crime Initiative (SCI) was launched in March 2002, covering the 10 police force areas that accounted for 83% of all recorded robbery in 2001/2002. The SCI involves a wide range of agencies working in partnership, delivering a programme of practical measures aimed to reduce street crime. Two years into the initiative, figures for the year 2003/4 show that robbery is 24% lower in the 10 forces than it was in 2001/2 and 17% lower across England and Wales as a whole.
How to use this guide
Nobody is expected to read the whole of the document. Instead, it is designed to be dipped into according to need. Each section is self-contained, but linked to others.
Part One - Developing strategy and assessing outcomes
The first part should be of particular interest to those with a role in developing strategy, whether as senior managers or as senior analysts, at national, force, Crime and Disorder Partnership or Basic Command Unit levels.
Sections 1 and 2 - 'Selecting effective methods to reduce street crime' and 'Reducing street crime: basic mechanisms' - briefly lay out some well-established principles and methods of crime control and problem-solving, including problem solving models such as SARA and the 5 I's, and practical aids to problem solving.
Section 3 - Practical guide to evaluation- this section addresses issues of evaluation, including the measurement of impact and side effects such as crime displacement.
Part Two - Problem-solving and specific street crime scenarios
This will be of interest to those attempting to devise tactics to deal with specific street crime problems.
Section 4 - Practical analysis: understanding street crime problems - offers practical illustrations of how police data can be used as part of the problem-solving SARA process. It demonstrates how the street crime problem can be broken down into easily identifiable sub-sets of problems making them easier to translate into tactical police-led responses.
Section 5 - Common problem scenarios for street crime - presents a series of scenarios found specifically for street crime problems, illustrating responses that have already had some success or show promise. The scenarios presented complement the sections on principles and problem solving. They can help local decision-makers to make informed decisions about how to identify and address particular street crime problems.
Last update: Wednesday, September 17, 2008