Introduction to Safety
This module has been prepared to provide practical guidance for both local authorities and developers on how crime risks and the fear of crime can be significantly reduced within new developments in Hertfordshire through addressing security at the design stage. It is expected therefore that this module, alongside the other modules of the Guide, will be used by all those involved in the planning process. In particular it should be read alongside the design for high quality environments module.
Designing high quality and safe development is an important aspect of the sustainability agenda, creating places where people want to live, work and enjoy in the knowledge that they can do so safely.
Places which are designed to be safe and secure in the first instance create financial savings to the occupier in terms of not needing to make costly alterations to improve safety and security.
Principles of crime prevention and community safety that should be considered as part of the design process are covered in this module. It is important to note that no universal solution can deal with every problem. Each location is unique and so what works well in one place may not work in another. Each principle is followed by a helpful checklist.
Case study schematics, diagrams and photographs are used throughout to illustrate how key principles can be translated into design practice.
For detailed planning applications, and outline applications where layout is a reserved matter, the design and access statement should explain and justify the proposed layout in terms of the relationship between buildings and public and private spaces within and around the site, and how these relationships will help to create safe, vibrant and successful places.
making the change
Section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 places a duty on each local authority "to exercise its functions with due regard to the likely effect of those functions on, and
the need to do all that it reasonably can to prevent crime and disorder in its area".
To help meet this aim, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) and the Home Office jointly published 'Safer Places: the Planning System and Crime Prevention'. This good practice guide provides practical advice on how safety and security contribute to the Government's aim of sustainable development as set out in Planning Policy Statement 1 (PPS1): Delivering Sustainable Development and Planning Policy Statement 3 (PPS3): Housing.
Section 36 of PPS1 places a duty on each authority to prepare robust policies on design and access. Such policies should be based on stated objectives for the future of the area and an understanding and evaluation of its present defining characteristics. A key objective is ensuring that developments create safe and accessible environments where crime and disorder or fear of crime does not undermine quality of life or community cohesion.
Design and Access Statements were introduced by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 and have been formally launched by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) circular 01/2006, Guidance on Changes to the Development Control System. A statement must accompany most planning applications and should demonstrate how crime prevention measures have been considered in the design proposal and how the design reflects the attributes of safe, sustainable places set out in Safer Places.
In conjunction with this module, Safer Places should be the first point of reference for those involved in the design process and for local authorities judging proposed
development schemes in the county. Together they provide guidance on good planning and its positive contribution to crime prevention and the creation of safer places and well designed sustainable communities.
Safer Places also identifies the 'Secured by Design' (SBD) initiative that offers in-depth advice and standards on environmental design and physical protection. SBD is the UK police flagship initiative which has proved successful in reducing incidences of crime and anti-social behaviour.
Additional information about crime prevention measures can be found in the following documents.
- By Design: Urban Design in the Planning System: towards better practice, DETR/CABE (2000)
- Urban Design Compendium, English Partnerships/Housing Corporation (2000)
- By Design: Better Places to Live, a companion guide to PPG3, ODPM/CABE (2001)
- Manual for Streets, Department for Transport, 2007
- www.securedbydesign.com
The advice in By Design, Urban Design in the Planning System: towards better practice and Secured by Design is brought together in Safer Places. It sets out seven attributes for safe and sustainable communities, covering:
- Access and movement
- Structure
- Surveillance
- Ownership
- Physical protection
- Activity
- Management and maintenance
These attributes have been re grouped in this module to form a set of principles for crime prevention that should be considered as part of the design process. These principles cover:
- Public/Private space
- Orientation of residential development
- Permeability
- Block Structure
- Parking
- Management & Maintenance
- Property Security
The Sustainable and Secure Buildings Act 2004 provides an extension to the Building Regulations, covering security and sustainability issues across the lifecycle of a building.