STREET CRIME PERSPECTIVES FROM YOUNG PEOPLE

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STREET CRIME PERSPECTIVES FROM YOUNG PEOPLE
Street crime has been a hot topic in the media in
recent weeks following the deaths of a number of
young people in London and the North West in gang
related attacks. Of particular concern has been
the extent to which young people are involved in
these activities and responsible for growing
levels of violence and community unrest. Ci
Research and Xtaster, through their online panel
Streetgov, wanted to find out what young people
across the UK thought about street crime and the
extent to which their lives have been affected by
it. We were also interested in understanding what
young people believed to be the causes of street
crime, and whether they perceived levels of
violence to be increasing. In conducting this
work, we have collaborated with Race On The
Agenda, a social policy think tank in London
which is leading on tackling gun crime through
its project Building Bridges and has recently
published a policy briefing on this issue. The
following is a summary of the findings which are
based on the responses of over 500 young people
from across the UK.
An overwhelming 93 of respondents believe that
there is a problem with street crime in the UK.
55 had either been a victim of crime or had
been affected by it through a family member or
friend. Of those who had been a victim of street
crime, 36 had been mugged and 27 had been a
victim of physical abuse. 40 of those who had
been a victim of crime had chosen not to report
the crime to the police I have been mugged
twiceonce by a gang of boys and another by a man
with a knife. A gang of three youths
approached me in the street in broad daylight.
They asked me if I had the time but I didn't have
my watch on - they thought I was lying and
grabbed my arm. I managed to wrestle away and
ran down the street but they followed and caught
up with me. They started hitting and kicking me
until a passing motorist stopped and scared them
off. Two-thirds of respondents believe that
street crime is on the increase in the UK. Gang
culture and family background were cited as main
reasons for driving up crime, followed by
boredom, drugs related issues and earning
respect. Drugs-related issues were more likely
to be perceived as a driver of crime in the South
East, whilst gang culture was perceived more so
in the North West region.
Regional view on crime increases Respondents in
Wales were more likely than any other region to
cite that crime was on the increase in their
area, followed by Scotland, South East and North
West. Knife crime was the most feared by 51 of
respondents, followed by sexual violence and gang
crime. Whilst 67 of respondents felt more young
people were carrying knives, respondents in
London were less likely to believe that people
were carrying knives to threaten people. Using
knives to create fear and for protection were
cited as the reasons why more young people were
believed to be carrying knives.
StreetGov is one of the largest on-line research
panels of young people in the UK. It is has been
developed by Ci Research in conjunction with the
highly successful Xtaster music community which
boasts a membership of over 40,000 young people
aged 14-20 across the UK. This survey was
conducted during the last week of March 2007.
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STREET CRIME PERSPECTIVES FROM YOUNG PEOPLE
Over a third of respondents quoted that the
greatest deterrent to street crime was
retribution at street level, followed by just
under a quarter quoting parents and police.
However when asked what would help tackle
weapon-related crime 43 quoted tougher
penalties, with 17 stating more policing and
16, better education. 92 of respondents who
had not been a victim or affected by crime said
that they would report it to the police, however
only 60 who had been a victim had reported the
incident. 86 of respondents would report a crime
they had witnessed to the police. Lack of faith
in the policing system and fear of repercussion
were given as key reasons for the remainder who
would not report a crime Even if you try and
keep quiet people usually find out. The streets
talk! If I told the police I would be in more
danger than if I just kept my mouth shut!

• 55 of respondents felt that there was not enough
  police presence in their area, with this view
  increasing with those in deprived areas and
  amongst young people in Wales and Ireland.
• When asked if respondents were aware of any
  schemes or initiatives that were running in their
  area to help
• reduce street crime, 84 were unaware of any
  measures in place to address the issue. Of those
  who were aware of schemes / initiatives
• 5 knew of youth groups / sports camps running
  in their area,
• 3 had noticed an increase in police and street
  wardens patrolling their area, and
• 3 were aware of knife amnesties amongst other
  initiatives.
• Overwhelmingly 85 felt that education services
  could play a greater role in tackling the gun and
  knife culture.
• When given the opportunity to be Prime Minister
  for a day, young people had a range of
  suggestions for what they would do to tackle
  street crime
• I would have more police patrols and tougher
  penalties for people carrying weapons. A lot of
  teenagers think that it doesn't matter because
  they're not 18 and they will not get any 'real'
  jail time.
• I think the best method would be to approach
  victims of street crime, and ask them to go and
  talk to children so that they realise the impact
  that their actions have on others.
• I would talk to young people and get down to
  their level. Possibly even live a day in their
  life to see how it REALLY is and not just how the
  media portrays it. You need to look into the
  reasons behind it all.

Conclusions This quick insight into the views of
young people on street crime has shown that it is
a major issue of concern, with over half of the
respondents either reporting direct experiences
of street crime, or being in contact with other
victims. There is a perception that street crime
is increasing, but not just in the areas that
have been the focus of recent media interest.
Instead, this is an issue that is affecting young
people across the UK. Amongst the young people
in this survey, fear of knife crime was more
prevalent than gun crime, suggesting that
agencies may need to prioritise their
interventions to focus on this issue. More
policing, tougher penalties and better education
are seen as the key measures needed to address
street crime, however the research suggests that
there are low levels of awareness of any local
interventions that are already in place.
Therefore, government, police and other national
and local agencies will need to ensure that
alongside introducing, or enforcing, any punitive
measures to address street crime, resources are
also made available to raise awareness of these
activities to raise the confidence levels in the
safety of their community.
For more details please contact Caroline
Masundire on 01625 628 000 or c.masundire_at_ci-rese
arch.com