Designing out

"designing out" approach

Definition

The "designing-out" approach aims to reduce risk due to crime and terrorism by appropriately shaped built infrastructure and by designing the urban environment to become less attractive as a working ground for criminals and terrorists.

The approach to “designing out” crime and terrorism (cf. Geason/Wilson 1989) assumes that certain types and locations of urban space are significantly more attractive to perpetrators than others, mainly for social and cultural reasons. Therefore, the choice of urban targets is seen as mainly driven by factors such as maximum visibility of casualties, vulnerable and actually harmed people, maximum media exposure and potential for vast spread of fear among the wider population.

Designing out, designing in and counter-terrorism

On the governmental level, designing out crime and designing in concepts, such as "designing in community safety", have been introduced as counter terrorism protective security strategies in England. "Crime for these purposes includes terrorism, and good counter-terrorism protective security is also good crime prevention." (HM Government 2012: 3). The UK authorities provide guidance for local authorities for preparing local development documents in order to protect crowded places from international terrorist targeting. They aim for the creation of safer buildings and places to decrease terrorist attacks and vulnerability. This example illustrates that urban planning in general and the designing out approach in particular are fundamental mitigation instruments vis-à-vis urban security risks.

Provided guidance includes advice how to incorporate counter terrorism protective security measures into high design quality; and how to improve security of existing buildings and public realm and environments. Specific requirements for transport facilities (airports, railways, ports) are communicated. Counter-terrorism good design is considered to include risk response and integrating protective security measures. Design principles should be considered as early as possible in planning and development processes and are promoted by the government.

In contrast to designing out, designing in concepts have become central in planning development and focus on an inclusive, participatory planning process in/for multicultural metropolitan environment(s) (cf. Ameyaw 2000); (see also “appreciative planning”).

Designing out principles for urban planning

Owing to the "designing out" approach, initiatives such as "Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design" have directly derived practical urban planning principles to limit the damage of terrorist attacks by specific environmental design of built infrastructure. These principles include structural/material aspects such as:

• Stand off distances, to keep people and bomber vehicles away from targets;
• Laminated glass;
• Framed structures;
• Bombshelter areas etc.

General design aspects with mainly psychological effects related to designing out, which need to be considered throughout the planning process, for designing buildings and public space, include the following (cf. "PluS Initial Report" by LKA NI 2010):

• Orientation;
• Good overview;
• Visibility;
• Lighting;
• Accessibility;
• Vibrant urban environment and multiple social functions;
• Responsibility;
• Avoiding conflicts;
• Ensuring maintenance.

For sustainable implementation of “designing out”, the following four factors should be present (ibid.):

1) Willingness of the participants to be part of a security partnership; 2) Integration of citizens in the planning process through communication and participation methods; 3) Decentralization and localization; 4) Commitment.

Critics

In "The Culture of Control: Crime and Social Order in Contemporary Society", cultural criminologist David Garland identifies cultural and institutional practices, as are designing out and designing in concepts, to construct artefacts that allow a continuation of imagined middle-class separation from crime. Garland illustrates his argument with examples from urban planning, especially the concept of offering citizens new middle-class type privacy in private public spaces, such as commercial malls based on architectures “to separate out different ‘types’ of people”, including commercial policing by private companies (Garland 2001: 162), which soon becomes ethical significance (see als ethics aspects).

Whereas fear of crime originally used to be investigated and politically perceived at the level of "[...] a localized, situational anxiety, affecting the worst-off individuals and neighbourhoods [...]", it now became “[...] regarded as a major social problem and a characteristic of contemporary culture." Accordingly, fear of crime can be read as being a cultural factor – if not "cultural theme" – in itself, rather than being a dependent variable in part influenced by (other) cultural factors.

Further Information

• The economic impact of designing out crime;
• The Designing Out Crime Supplementary Planning Document;
• Designing Out Crime (DOC) research centre (NSW Department of Attorney General and Justice, in partnership with the University of Technology Sydney);
• Design Out Crime Research Centre (AU);
• Designing Out Crime Association;
• The Design Council and the Home Office’s Design and Technology Alliance Against Crime; the Designers' Guide; and the Out Crime Toolkit;
• The Crime Prevention Website;
• The International CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) Association

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