Managing behaviour

Louise Casey, co-ordinator for the Respect Task Force, based at the Home Office, talks about the impact of good design on crime and anti-social behaviour.

The Respect drive is fundamentally about managing behaviour and building the kind of communities we all want to live in. That's why development and regeneration of communities is a key Respect issue. When we regenerate an estate or plan a new community, we must avoid the mistakes of the past by ensuring that the design builds out negative and encourages positive behaviour. Good design can play a key role in creating places where people want to live and work. I have seen for myself the positive impact that well-designed homes, with well thought-out public space and services on hand, can have in creating places people are proud to call home. More information on designing out crime and anti-social behaviour can be found at Secured by Design.

That focus on design and building is traditionally what people working in development and physical regeneration have focused on - and it is important. But for me there is also another even more important aspect to this type of work. And that is how do we regenerate the people who live in those communities or ensure that new communities are managed so that problems don't arise?

Putting people first

We know that anti-social behaviour can be both a cause and effect of an area's decline, so it is essential that we think about our approach to people. We need to ensure that this is given as much prominence, if not more, than the design of the buildings and infrastructure if we are to build the communities we all want to see. And I think a wide range of people recognise that that hasn't always been the case - although we have certainly learnt a lot since the 1960s and 70s.

We're committed to delivering this change from the centre. For example, funding in the housing market renewal pathfinders is now dependent on having in place schemes to manage behaviour and we have put in place a protocol to help pathfinders deliver, available from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).

It's also important that we get better at managing the process - particularly of regeneration. Of course, it takes time to secure planning permission, to obtain compulsory purchase orders, to decant people in and out of properties. But five years is a long time to wait for regeneration to happen - a whole secondary school lifetime - and we know the process can be a stressful one, throwing up problems of its own. Communication with tenants is key, but so is managing the transition so that we don't let anti-social behaviour take hold, whether that means an additional visible presence on the streets or keeping up repairs on estates.

The Respect Action Plan also contains a commitment, led by the DCLG, that all government-funded regeneration will be accompanied by measures to manage behaviour. This will mark a fundamental shift in the way that funding is provided. We are working with colleagues across government, and organisations like English Partnerships and CABE, to do this.

For social landlords, we've already set out the principles of good housing management in the Respect Standard. This brings together common sense principles about housing management. I really believe that, if implemented properly, these can lead to thriving communities even in areas where housing stock isn't of the quality it might be. You can find out more here.

I also know that more and more communities are mixed communities, and that problems of anti-social behaviour can occur in the owner-occupied and private rented sector. We've introduced selective licensing to deal with problems of anti-social behaviour in the private rented sector. I would urge local authorities experiencing significant problems of anti-social behaviour in the private rented sector to think about applying for a selective licensing regime. More information is available here.

Development or regeneration of an area is a good example of how the Respect programme differs from TOGETHER, which preceded it. For the Respect programme to work we need to engage a whole new range of professions - including those CABE work with. I really hope everyone involved in development - from architects to planners, from councillors to neighbourhood managers - will ask themselves at every stage how what they're doing promotes good behaviour, challenges bad and communicates their actions to the communities they serve. Then you'll be playing your part in delivering on the Respect programme.

Louise Casey is the government's co-ordinator for the Respect Task Force, based at the Home Office.