Criminal Damage Initiative 2006/07
Plymouth
In 2006/07 the Home Office funded 10 areas to develop innovative approaches to tackling criminal damage. Of the £500,000, Plymouth received £50,000. This report details how the funding was used in Plymouth and summarises the main findings of the evaluation.
Details of the Project
The project has been co-ordinated by a multi-agency group including the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP), the police, Drugs and Alcohol Team (DAAT). The initiatives targeted six areas and had a particular focus on the link between criminal damage and alcohol. Activities included test purchasing, high profile policing, out-reach and peer education.
Main activities and outcomes
Aim: Increase earlier detection of anti social behaviour that may lead to criminal damage.
Activity:High profile policing involved dedicated patrols by Police Officers, neighbourhood PCSOs and where possible, Alcohol Reduction Officers. They targeted areas on Friday and Saturday and on dates traditionally associated with high criminal damage activity. The police officers noted details of young people who were in possession of alcohol or suspected of having been drinking, and they were escorted home.
Aim: To ensure young people and their parents were informed about the risks of alcohol abuse.
Activity: Police officers passed details of young people in possession of alcohol to the Police’s Youth Intervention Team (YIT) who visited the homes of those who had been stopped. The visits aimed to make their parents aware that their children had been found with alcohol and to explain links between alcohol and criminal damage. Where necessary, referrals were made to community provision aimed at addressing issues such as drugs, alcohol and sexual health.
Aim: Reduce underage sales of alcohol to young people.
Activity: Test purchasing in the target neighbourhoods. In on-licensed premises this involved spot checks of customers and in off-licenses this involved under-age people attempting to buy alcohol.
Outcome:When comparing the period in which the project operated with the same period in the previous year, criminal damage figures show that in four of the six target areas, the level of criminal damage decreased.
Aim:Engaging young people.
Activity:In three of the target areas, young people were selected to attend centre-based workshop sessions run by Harbour at community centres. The sessions focused on alcohol, drugs and sexual health information and education. Youth workers attended along side the young people to provide ‘a way in’ for the youth workers to interact with a wider group of young people in each area. Outreach sessions took place on two nights a week for up to eight weeks, and involved two youth workers in each area. In addition, once a fortnight these youth workers were accompanied by Harbour street workers in order to provide accurate and up-to-date information about drug and alcohol safety.
Outcome:It is estimated that up to 400 young people were involved. All the youth workers were positive about the value of engaging with young people in order to understand and address deep-seated issues. The outreach work was most successful in terms of engagement; in one area two young women who took part in outreach sessions attended a PCSO training day to provide an insight into their views and the relationship between young people and the police. Centre based workshops were less successful and there was little focus on criminal damage. The initiative continues to be funded through SSCF monies and is closely linked with Weeks of Action priority areas identified by the partnership.
Aim:Understand the causes of criminal damage.
Activity:Qualitative interviews were carried out by the police, Harbour representatives and youth workers in three of the target areas to find out the causes of criminal damage.
Outcome:The findings have highlighted the linkage between criminal damage and alcohol use and motivations for criminal damage. Many people did not know graffiti was criminal damage. Accounts from all three areas suggested there was no strong or consistent link between criminal damage and alcohol and that there may be more of a link between drugs and criminal damage. A strong link was identified between criminal damage and social exclusion, boredom and the need to retaliate.
Key Conclusions:
- A reduction in criminal damage for the city as a whole and for the target neighbourhoods but this cannot be said to be solely based on the initiatives carried out with the funding.
- Success in raising awareness among young people of alcohol and the link to criminal damage.
Contact for further information:
Robin Morris, Government Office for SW:Robin.MORRIS@gosw.gsi.gov.uk
Criminal Damage Reduction Team: Criminal.damage@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk
Last update: Friday, January 04, 2008