CPTED Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design

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CPTEDCrime Prevention Through Environmental
Design

• 2004
• Crime Prevention Office

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CPTED Defined

• "The proper design and effective use of the built
  environment can lead to a reduction in the fear
  and incidence of crime, and an improvement of the
  quality of life.
• CPTED as defined by the National Crime Prevention
  Institute

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CPTED Abstract

• The interdisciplinary roots of Crime
  Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED)
  are based on the fields of sociology, psychology,
  ecology of crime, environmental criminology,
  criminal justice, and architecture. CPTED has
  borrowed tenets from the social sciences and the
  physical sciences to create a holistic approach
  to explaining the environment and people's
  behavior.
• http//www.cpted-security.com/cpted8.htm

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CPTED Questions

• Designation
• What is the designated purpose of this space?
• What was it originally intended to be used for?
• How well does the space support its current use?
  It's intended use?
• Is there conflict?
• Definition
• How is the space defined?
• Is it clear who owns it?
• Where are its borders?
• Are there social or cultural definitions that
  affect how that space is used?
• Are the legal or administrative rules clearly set
  out and reinforced in policy?
• Are there signs?
• Is there conflict or confusion between the
  designated purpose and definition?
• Design
• How well does the physical design support the
  intended function?
• How well does the physical design support the
  definition of the desired or accepted
• behaviors?
• Does the physical design conflict with or impede
  the productive use of the space or the
• proper functioning of the intended human
  activity?

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CPTED Strategy 1
A basement computer lab with no natural
observation.
Natural Surveillance A design concept directed
primarily at keeping intruders easily observable.
Promoted by features that maximize visibility of
people, parking areas and building entrances
doors and windows that look out on to streets and
parking areas pedestrian-friendly sidewalks and
streets front porches adequate nighttime
Improved natural observation of the same lab by
addition of windows.
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CPTED Strategy 2

• Territorial Reinforcement
• Physical design can create or
• extend a sphere of influence.
• Users then develop a sense of
• territorial control while
• potential offenders,
• perceiving this control, are
• discouraged.
• Promoted by features that
• define property lines and
• distinguish private spaces
• from public spaces using
• landscape plantings,
• pavement designs, gateway
• treatments, and 'CPTED"
• fences.
•  

This photo clearly demarks public from private
space with the use of a fence.
These apartments lack clear definition. Note the
ground level windows in this photo. This has been
a source of unauthorized access and criminal
activity.
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CPTED Strategy 3

• Natural Access Control
• A design concept directed
• primarily at decreasing
• Crime opportunity by
• denying access to crime
• targets and creating in
• offenders a perception of
• risk.
• Gained by designing
• streets, sidewalks, building
• entrances and
• neighborhood gateways
• to clearly indicate public
• routes and discouraging
• access to private areas with
• structural elements.
•  

This photo illustrates both natural observation
from a business reception area to an elevator
lobby area and natural access control. Visitors
can clearly identify where they may go.
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CPTED Strategy 4

• Activity Support
• Activity support is the presence of activity
  planned for the space. Activity support involves
  placing activity where the individuals engaged in
  an activity will become part of the natural
  surveillance system. Examples include
• Place safe activities in areas that will
  discourage would be offenders, to increase the
  natural surveillance of these activities and the
  perception of safety for normal users, and the
  perception of risk for offenders.
• Place high risk activities in safer locations to
  overcome the vulnerability of these activities by
  using natural surveillance and access control of
  the safe area.
• Locate gathering areas in locations that provide
  for natural surveillance and access control or in
  locations away from the view of would-be
  offenders.
• Improve the scheduling of space to allow for
  effective use and appropriate intensity of
  accepted behaviors.

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CPTED Strategy 5

• Maintenance
• Proper maintenance of landscaping, lighting
  treatment and other features can facilitate the
  principles of CPTED, territorial reinforcement,
  natural surveillance and natural access control.
  Functions include
• Proper maintenance of lighting fixtures to
  prescribed standards.
• Landscaping which is maintained at prescribed
  standards.
• Minimizing the conflicts between surveillance and
  landscaping as the ground cover, shrubs and trees
  mature.

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Before CPTED
1111 East Turney Avenue, Phoenix This property
was known for drug sales, assaults, thefts and a
variety of other crimes prior to government
intervention. Number of calls for service prior
to intervention 608 Number of Departmental
Reports prior to intervention 106 Number of
arrests prior to intervention 53
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After CPTED
1111 East Turney Avenue, PhoenixThe property
owners did a remarkable job of turning the
property and its reputation around. Number of
calls for service after intervention 44This is a
reduction of 92.7 Number of Departmental
Reports after intervention 11This is a reduction
of 89.6 Number of arrests after intervention
2This is a reduction 96.2
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References

• http//www.cptedontario.ca/
• http//www.cpted-watch.com/
• http//www.tempe.gov/tdsi/Planning/CPTED/cpted1.ht
  m
• http//www.broward.org/mpi00300.htm