Surveying Fear: Crime, Buses and New Paint

Abstract

Fear of crime continues to be a significant problem individually, socially, politically and economically. This article evaluates a local level initiative in Durham, a city in north-east England, aimed at reducing fear of crime by improving the surrounding environment. Durham bus station, an area of the city identified by the local police as a ‘hotspot’ for criminal and anti-social activity, was cleaned and redecorated by offenders as part of their Community Service Orders, under the supervision of County Durham Probation Service. Members of the general public were interviewed prior to the work being carried out and after its completion to establish whether it had been effective in reducing fear of crime, and also to gauge the effect on public perception of this kind of initiative with offenders. The results showed a reduction in the perceived levels of overall crime in the vicinity of the bus station, a decrease in the perceived likelihood of seeing crime, and a decrease in the perceived likelihood of being a victim of crime. These findings were generally consistent across males and females, and across age groups.