Smashed windows, damaged buildings, and graffiti at schools around the country cost New Zealand Taxpayers more than $33m over the period of 2013 to 2016.  Indeed, the cost of vandalism repair became such a significant issue that the Ministry of Education changed the funding structure so that the cost of repairs were no longer separately reported; it is fair to say that it is likely to remain a significant annual cost.

In an effort to reduce vandalism and the associated financial burden, the Ministry of Education introduced a set of security guidelines for school Principals and Boards of Trustees, requiring them to use the principles of ‘Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design’ (CPTED), when undertaking any new building projects above 1000m2

CPTED is a crime prevention philosophy which incorporates security measures within the design of a building, including consideration of the effective use of the environment. The aim is to holistically design the building and its grounds, leading to a reduction in the incidence and fear of crime. CPTED has been proven to reduce criminal opportunity, whilst simultaneously fostering positive social interactions among the intended users of a space.

How can CPTED principles be used by educational facilities?

The four key overlapping elements of CPTED are Surveillance, Territorial reinforcement, Access management and Quality environments.[1] When used together, these elements improve both the security of the premises, as well as personal safety for the users of a space.

1.     Surveillance

People undertaking criminal activity do not want to be seen. Hence, the ability for users of a building to have good visibility and see what’s going on inherently discourages crime.

To enable this, the design of a building and wider site, should ensure physical features do not hinder sightlines which would provide natural cover for those trying to remain hidden.

Furthermore, most vandalism occurs when schools are vacant. Hence, an easy way to combat crime is to introduce people onto the premises outside standard school hours. This could include designing the building to encourage community use of the grounds, for example by hosting night classes, weekend events or sports programs over the school holidays. Not only would this help to prevent crime, but it may also introduce some additional sources of revenue.

2.     Territorial reinforcement

Human behaviour provides people with a natural desire to protect territory that they feel is their own, and a natural respect for the territory of others. The extent to which people will defend territory depends on their personal investment in, or responsibility for, that property.

Facilitating the use of school grounds by the local community outside of school hours will foster a sense of pride and community ownership of the school. This, in turn, will encourage members of the community to care for and protect the school by keeping the grounds tidy and reporting any suspicious activity.

The design of schools should clearly mark the boundary between school grounds and private or public spaces, to reinforce the area of ‘school territory’. If this is done carefully, it can reduce the risk of potentially undesirable general public activities spilling over onto school property whilst simultaneously enhancing the opportunity for natural surveillance.

3.     Access management

The location of entrances, exits, fencing and lighting can be used to direct both foot and vehicle traffic in ways that discourage crime.

Although multiple access points can ease congestion around schools during drop off and pick up times, they also encourage use of school grounds as a public throughfare, which may increase the risk of opportunistic crime by passers-by. Pedestrian access points and connected pathways should be designed to discourage unnecessary traffic through the school grounds. Access control points can be used to limit access to the premises, and also act in a preventative manner, by increasing the perceived risk of detection to the offender.

Criminals do not like to be seen. Careful placement of security lights around high-risk areas such as building entrances can reduce the risk of attempted unauthorised access, vandalism and theft.

4.     Quality environments

Good quality, well maintained places attract people and support surveillance oportunites.

Well maintained school grounds encourages the local community to use them outside school hours, such as families playing sports on school fields. This increase in usage strengthens natural surveillance and reduces opportunities for crime.

Ensuring any vandalism or graffiti is repaired quickly shows the school is cared for and makes any new damage obvious. This discourages further criminal actions by increasing the perceived risk of activities being detected and the perpetrator being caught.

Practical implementation of CPTED

The Ministry of Education has a set of guidelines for all levels of educational establishments, setting out requirements for Principals and Boards of Trustees to improve security design in an effort to reduce vandalism and the associated financial burden.[2]

Along with a requirement for all educational facilities to undertake a security risk assessment, the guidelines require all building projects over 1000m2 to have a security design report completed to:

• Identify local security issues.

• Outline how the design will deal with these issues, including using concepts from Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED).

The first step on this journey is the completion of a comprehensive security risk assessment. From there, bespoke mitigations and security processes can be designed and implemented, complemented with ongoing maintenance and improvement programs.

The principles of CPTED have a proven track record of reducing crime across a wide range of premises.  It is our hope that by implementing the tips above, schools can reduce the cost of vandalism repair and divert it back into their core function, educating our children.

[1] https://www.justice.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Publications/cpted-part-1.pdf

[2] https://www.education.govt.nz/school/property-and-transport/projects-and-design/design/design-standards/security-design/