Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (1/4) Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) [pronounced sep-ted] is the proper design and effective use of the built environment that can lead to a reduction in the fear and incidence of crime, and an improvement in the quality of life. This definition reflects the expanded, current, more holistic perspective of CPTED encompassing (1) the criminal offender perspective regarding an environment and the risk of getting caught when committing a crime and (2) the social dynamics, sense of ownership of the environment, and their associated protective actions by persons who work, live, or traverse the environment en route to another destination. Research around environmental design resulted in the identification and definitions of concepts which have proven to reduce crime, through deterrence because prevention is not always possible, where implemented and improve the quality of life for individuals who inhabit those environments. Concepts allowing for successful CPTED implementation: 1. Natural Access Control Design features that clearly indicate public routes and discourage access to private structural elements. These features decrease an opportunity for crime by creating in an offender a perception of unacceptable risk when attempting access to private areas, which marks the stranger as a possible intruder. Such design features include placement of entrances and exits, fencing, and landscaping to control traffic flow. 2. Natural Surveillance Design features that increase the visibility of a property. These features maximize the ability of persons in the area to see persons in the vicinity and avoid trouble and allow external activities to be seen from adjacent building structures by persons who could call for help. Such design features include landscaping, lighting, window and stairway placement, and building entrance and garage layouts. 3. Territorial Reinforcement Design features that clearly indicate public and private structural elements of a property. An individual will develop a sense of territoriality for a space with frequent activities in an area, a sense of ownership. With this feeling of ownership the individual will want to defend his environment. This ownership does not necessarily mean legal ownership; it maybe a perceived ownership, such as the sense of ownership that employees feel for the office in which they work. The sense of territory and ownership by an individual is reinforced through regularly scheduled activities, inspections, and maintenanc
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 06:20:49 +0000
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