What is Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED)?
CPTED is an approach to planning and development that reduces opportunities for crime.
Research has shown that environmental design can reduce both the opportunity for crime and the fear of crime. Through their involvement
in design and construction, architects, planners and builders can influence the creation of safer neighbourhoods and communities.
Communities, neighbourhoods, individual homes, and other buildings, streets, and parks can all be made safer using design principles that make it more difficult to carry out criminal acts.
CPTED can reduce crime and fear through:
- Encouraging residents' interaction, vigilance, and control over their neighbourhood
- Making it easier to spot suspicious people and activities
- Encouraging the intended use of public space by residents
- Identifying ownership by delineating private space from public space through real or symbolic boundaries
- Using physical barriers, security devices and tamper-resistant materials to restrict entrance
- A design or location decision that uses the surrounding environment and minimizes the use of space by conflicting groups
- Ensuring that a building or area is clean, well-maintained, and graffiti-free
CPTED is part of a comprehensive approach to crime prevention. By changing the physical environment, it complements community-based policing, Neighbourhood Watch, and other programs that address some of the root causes of criminal behaviour.
What are the main steps in CPTED projects?
- engage the support of residents and other key partners
- identify crime and disorder problems in and around the site
- analyse current or proposed design based on existing crime problems and potential criminal opportunities
- develop preventive or corrective design options
- carry out the preferred option
- monitor and evaluate how the implemented option affects crime, resident surveillance, interaction, and territoriality
- disseminate and promote evaluation results
To find out more on how to perform and complete a CPTED audit, please contact the following:
Toronto Police Service
Community Programs
40 College Street
Toronto, ON M5G 2J3
Phone: 416-808-7080
Fax: 416-808-7062
www.torontopolice.on.ca
The Toronto Police Service Community Programs is comprised of Community Services, Youth Services and Volunteer Services. We serve as a bridge between
the public and the police through various programs, including Crime Stoppers, Empowered Student Partnership (E.S.P.), Family Services - Domestic Violence, Family Services - Child Abuse, Victim Services and Crime Prevention. The Toronto Police Service has developed a CPTED Safety Audit Checklist. Please contact the police department directly for more information.
For more information on CPTED practices, please refer to:
