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Critical public policy debates on the likely effect of reductions in police staffing levels and on understanding the implications of crime patterns have been informed by findings from research conducted at the University of Birmingham by Dr Siddhartha Bandyopadhyay. The novel research contributed to raising public and practitioner awareness and understanding of the possible impact of cuts in police staffing, whether or not "prison works" and in explaining the apparent paradox of a fall in recorded acquisitive crime during a recession. These findings, which often challenged political perspectives and conventional wisdom, were initially publicised by an independent think-tank, Civitas, and followed-up in national press articles (one of which generated approximately 450 reader comments) and presentations to stakeholder agencies including central UK Government.
Research in this Unit at NTU has:
(a) Changed the way victimisation is conceptualised, measured, and reported within official crime surveys;
(b) Transformed the methodological evaluation of the impact of security devices upon crime and repeat victimisation through the introduction of multi-level statistical modelling as opposed to bivariate cross-tabulations which constituted the state of the art prior to her work.
Professor Tseloni's research has directly informed the methodological training of crime survey analysts (including those working on the Home Office British Crime Survey), and contributed through the dissemination of Home Office guidelines to the day-to-day crime reduction practices and responses to crime of police forces in England and Wales.
Research undertaken by Armitage and Hirschfield and colleagues from the Applied Criminology Centre (ACC) has made a significant contribution to crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED). Emerging from a wider programme of study in the field of environmental criminology, research completed at the University of Huddersfield since 2004 into `designing out' crime has been incorporated into national and local planning policy and procedures and has influenced international urban planning. This research has underpinned the UK Association of Chief Police Officers' (ACPO) success in extending the designing out crime initiative, Secured By Design (SBD), to 350,000 homes, and in reducing burglary rates by more than half in housing designed to this standard.
Research produced by UCL's Department of Security & Crime Science (SCS) and Jill Dando Institute of Security & Crime Science has been used in the UK and internationally to shape policies and guide practices using situational methods to prevent crime. Working closely with police forces, crime prevention practitioners and policy makers, SCS staff have provided evidence, expertise and advice to support particular crime prevention initiatives and approaches to crime prevention more broadly. The impact of the research is demonstrated by acknowledged contributions to policy, policing and crime prevention practices, and to fighting the specific crimes of bike theft and internal child sex trafficking.
The Design Against Crime research initiative provides leadership in the field of design-led, sustainable practice in crime prevention and community safety, demonstrating the following impact:
Research on spatial patterns of crime at UCL has influenced police practice and has informed policy and its implementation in countries including Australia, Canada, UK, and USA. Our research has challenged conventional wisdom amongst police and policymakers about spatial patterns of crime. Working directly with police forces and through our continuing professional development training, we have spearheaded the use of crime mapping and forecasting methods in practice. Implementation has led to documented reductions in crimes such as burglary of between 20-66%.
Dr Katharina Hall's blog Mrs Peabody Investigates (http://mrspeabodyinvestigates.wordpress.com/; henceforth MPI) has been fostering public debate on German, European and international crime fiction since January 2011. Beneficiaries include readers, authors, translators, publishers, critics and bloggers in 130 countries. With over 220,000 hits and 2,500 comments, MPI has been featured on BBC Radio 4 and is linked to by BBC Online, crime blogs, and publisher/author websites (C10). Providing a distinctive service of academically-informed reviews of high-quality crime fiction, MPI is regarded in the industry as 'a ground-breaking blog that is transforming readers' understanding and appreciation of international crime' (The Times crime-fiction critic).
The Design Against Crime Research Centre (DACRC) undertakes practice-led socially responsive design research, including visualisation of crime problems and innovative responses for design education, government and industry. Research outcomes deliver crime prevention by design, addressing bag theft, bike theft, ATM crime, shoplifting, graffiti and counter-terrorism. Outputs include products, resources, conferences, exhibitions, competitions and papers. Research has been applied by national/international bodies undertaking practice, policy, and guidance in design and crime prevention. The Centre's work has been recognised by the Sir Misha Black Award (2006), was described by an AHRC Impact case study (2008) as `pioneering', and shortlisted in the Environmental Impact category of the UK Impact Awards (2009).
Dr Christopher Pittard's research focuses on Victorian popular culture and representations of criminality. This work played a significant part in developing Portsmouth City Council's cultural and tourism strategies, informing the council's literature strategy and the Home of Great Writing programme, and strengthening the reputation of Portsmouth as a thriving literary city. Public engagement activities have raised awareness locally, nationally and internationally, of the city's significant associations with Arthur Conan Doyle and Charles Dickens. These initiatives are central facets of the Local Authority's strategy for economic development and have shaped Cultural Services' ongoing policy commitments.
Federico Varese`s research has redirected thinking on the (mainly local) nature of organized crime. Varese has shown that a significant factor accounting for the spread of organized crime is the efforts of individuals to escape arrest in their home country. His research, as well as his role on the Strategic Review (2010), has made substantial contributions to the restructuring of the UK`s Serious Organized Crime Agency (SOCA). In Italy and Canada, he has helped to shape and inform policy debates within the Anti-Mafia Commission, and Public Safety Canada, respectively. His work has also been cited as being "particularly relevant" by prosecutors in Italy. More specifically, Varese`s use of quantitative methods to analyze the transcripts of wiretaps has inspired Europol to organize the training of police and prosecutors in these methods, and to alter their approach to better combat organized crime.