1. 695811
Prepare a 1000 word summary identifying a current issue within community safety delivery
that would be an appropriate area for research.
The Fear of Crime
There has been an interest in the fear of crime since the 1960s, when it was first discovered which
showed a range of issues within the community to do with disorder (Farrall & Lee,2008, p.1).The
British Crime Survey discovered that individuals fear of crime does not relate to the actual risk of
becoming a victim (Groff, 2013).The fear of crime can have a detrimental effect upon an individual’s
day to day life (Shaftoe, p.38).In order for communities to feel safer and to develop positively
research needs to be undertaken to discover why the fear of crime does not reflect the actual likeliness
of being a victim of crime. This has been researched; however, it has not been researched sufficiently
for the results to have a positive impact upon the level of fear of crime in relation to anti-social
behaviour. A community has such a diverse range of needs that it is extremely difficult to address all
of them with minimal research and understanding. Thus, issues that contribute to the fear of crime
should be thoroughly researched and then findings should be applied to improve community safety
delivery to reduce the fear of crime.
One major contributor to the fear of crime is anti-social behaviour within the community. This would
be an appropriate starting point for the researching to discover why the fear of crime is so high
compared to actualcrime rates. Especially as anti-social behaviour is often seen as a level two crime,
yet it can have such a detrimental effect upon a life.
It is known that alcohol increase levels of crime and anti-social behaviour which was stated in the
anti-social behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill of 2013. There have been previous attempts to reduce
the effects of alcohol upon anti-social behaviour, such as The Police reform and Social Responsibility
Act 2011 which tried to tackles premises that sold irresponsibly as well as cracking down on alcohol
being sold to those under age. However,the growing culture of heavy drinking on a night out is
growing more and more in contemporary society. Thus, this makes it difficult to control especially
with the influence of the drinks industry. Loveday (2005, p.196) suggests that the drinks industry can
be very pervasive which encourages the drinking culture. For example, the release of ‘Alcopops’ was
aimed at young females. (2005, p.196). However,it is not always alcohol that encourages anti-social
behaviour. For example, Loveday (2005, p.198) suggests that it is also situational factors such as the
layout of the pub/bar which can cause anti-social behaviour. Therefore,it is known that a major
contributor of anti-social behaviour is that of alcohol. Further research into the night time economy as
well as the influence of the drinks industry in terms of heavy drinking would have a positive impact
on an understanding of the relationship between alcohol and anti-social behaviour. Thus, legislation
would be put in place once the known factors were made clear.

2. 695811
It is not just alcohol that encourages disorder within the community. Just as it is not the only factor
that communities are concerned about. Hinkle (2015, p.149) suggests that the fear of crime has not
been measured consistently throughout research which is why there is often a miss understating of
fear and risk of crime. For example, he suggests that fear implies emotion however it has not been
studied with such meaning (2015, p.150). The fear of crime can stop a person from leaving their
home or continuing a day normally. For example, Groff (2013) suggests that the fear of crime heavily
influences people’s behaviour which can lead to negative consequences such as isolation. Enders &
Jennett (2008, p.188) suggest that it is extremely difficult to research the fear of crime as there are
many external influences within a community that encourages this. Thus, research should be
undertaken in local communities by discovering the levels of fear and how this fear has been
encouraged. Some argue that the media heavily influences what a person can believe, however,
Enders & Jennett argue that the media is not as influential as everyone believes (p.189). Therefore,the
influence of the media in terms of anti-social behaviour would also be a point for research in helping
reduce the fear within local communities’ and to discover whether it influences communities’ as much
as some believe.
Many believe that crime is on the rise when the fact is, it is falling (Travis, 2003). The Guardian
(2003) suggested that one in three adults said they were worried about anti-social behaviour such as
littering, vandalising and teenagers “hanging around the streets” (2003). Anti-social behaviour has
been a priority since the Crime and Disorder Act of 1998; however, the actual impact of anti-social
behaviour has not changed (Jones,2012). An argument for anti-social behaviour is that it is normal
behaviour of children growing up (Travis, 2013); rather anti-social behaviour is causing an
intolerance of young people (2013). Thus, research into the factors that contribute to the fear of crime
will help not only those in fear but also those that are unfairly targeted.
To conclude, the fear of crime has a detrimental effect upon communities. The fear of crime has been
researched previously; however, it should be researched differently. The fear of crime should be
measured as an emotion rather than a concrete concept as Hinkle (2015) suggests. The research
should be upon fear rather than risk. The Pilkington’s does encourage the fear for anti-social
behaviour, as the media often exploits horror stories. The media can heavily influence what societies
believe however, it is up to local authorities and partnerships to work with communities in dealing
with local issues. However,in order to overcome this fear, research needs to be undertaken to
discover what works when it comes to tackling the fear of crime. One example is anti-social
behaviour which is why it should be the main focus for the research when discovering how to deal
with the fear of crime.
996 words

3. 695811
References
Coles, C. & Kelling, G. (1997). Fixing Brown Windows. NewYork:Touchstone
Groff, A. (2013). Fear of Crime. SalemPress Encyclopaedia,p1. Retrieved from
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/detail/detail?sid=39741604-5697-4da6-9ea4-
d210d1bd1216%40sessionmgr114&vid=1&hid=114&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#db=e
rs&AN=90558327
Grose, C. (2013). Anti-social behaviour reforms will make protecting victims difficult. Retrieved from
http://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2013/nov/28/antisocial-behaviour-bill-changes-victims
Hinkle, J. (2015). Emotional fear of crime vs. Perceived safety and risk: Implications for measuring
‘Fear’ and testing the Broken Window Thesis. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 40 (1), p.147-
168
Jones, M. (2012). Tackling anti-social behaviour is still a priority. Retrieved from
http://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2012/oct/04/antisocial-behaviour-social-housing-
budgets
Lee,M. & Farrall, S (Eds). ( 2008) . Fear of crime: critical voices in an age of anxiety. Retrieved
from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/portsmouth/reader.action?docID=10236299
Loveday, B. (2005). The 2003 Licensing Act: Alcohol use and Anti-social behaviour in England and
Wales. Police Journal,78 (3), p.191-208. Retrieved from
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=bf1bf6e8-c1dc-4b9f-9060-
d1eb53bab89d%40sessionmgr113&vid=5&hid=114
Shaftoe, H. (2004). Crime prevention: Facts,fallacies and the future. New York:Palgrave Macmillan
Travis, A. (2003). Public blind to fall in crime.Retrieved from
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/apr/05/ukcrime.prisonsandprobation
Travis, A. (2013). ‘Growing up’ behaviour too often labelled anti-social, says police chief. Retrieved
from http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/nov/11/antisocial-behaviour-police-chief-young-
people