New Report about Social Innovation Techniques for Effective Crime Control

The safety of a neighborhood is to a large extent dependent on social factors. Social control is a very powerful deterrent for criminals but it also improves the awareness of risks and resilience to crimes. This consistently demonstrated phenomenon has now been translated into a new concept, Communities for security, in which national police, municipalities, citizens and interested organisations can join forces to improve social control.

The techniques of facilitating and organising a sustainable cooperation between partners have been scientifically tested and has resulted into a demonstrable impact in reducing crime. The ebook ‘Communities voor Veiligheid' (in Dutch) gives an introduction to how crime is prevented and its impact, mitigated by activating and facilitating Communities for Security.

The organisation itself is flexible and robust, but this is only due to its foundation of mutual trust and focus on cooperation. If one of the partners returns to the dominant organisational focus of cost efficiency and market competitiveness, the cooperation is seriously hindered. In the report, the new philosophy of organising social innovation in safety and security is described, which is an extension of New Public Governance theory by Osborne.

Finally, the book analyses current trends in organising safety and security, and postulates the dominant characteristics of the future of safety and security in the neighborhood. With special attention to the demands of the partners: police, municipalities, citizens and interested organisations.

This ebook is a result of the National Innovation Agenda for Security (NIAS) focus point 4: 'Social Innovation and Self-Organising Capacity’ which focuses on social innovation for social security with the aim to solve security issues through a combination of social and technological innovations.

Read the full report here