Aims & Objectives
The European Committee for Standardisation CEN has been working on a draft for the “Prevention of Crime by Urban Planning and Building Design” for more than 13 years. The European Norm CEN 14383-2 shall be based on the European Urban Charter which asserts the basic rights for citizens of European towns to “a secure and safe town free, as far as possible, from crime, delinquency and aggression”, and follow the final declaration of a conference of the Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE; Erfurt 26.-28. February 1997), which stated that “crime, fear of crime and urban insecurity in Europe are major problems affecting the public and that finding satisfactory solutions for them is one of the main keys to civic peace an stability (Final Draft for Technical Report, p.6)”.
Today the draft for the Norm CEN/TR 14383-2 represents more than technical limits and figures that shall be observed in the building laws, and it covers a wide range of topics such as crime, public disorder and fear of crime. Design guidelines are given for specific types of environments (refurbishments and new housing projects), security issues (violence, vandalism, social and physical disorder, fear of crime) and a number of potential stakeholders (economy, industry, police, social work, planning authorities, etc.). The Norm CEN/TR 14383-2 intends to combine questions of “contents” and “process”, and thus, first, helps develop “strategies and measures which may be implemented to prevent and reduce crime problems in a given environment”, and secondly gives advice on “how to follow an effective and efficient procedure in which stakeholders should choose the strategies and measures most effective and feasible to prevent and reduce the crime problems as defined by the stakeholders (Final Draft, p. 8)”. It is important to know that the Norm is considered a document of recommendation only, and stresses the voluntary application of proposed strategies and measures by stakeholders and responsible bodies.
After more than 13 years of work on the development of a draft for the European Norm 14383-2, a study seems appropriate to scrutinize on the following aspects:
1. The genesis of the European Norm CEN/TR 14383-2
How can the long-term procedure of the development of the norm be understood?
Which theoretical ideologies of crime prevention are integrated in the text of the Norm CEN/TR 14383-2?
Who initiated the working group on the Norm CEN/TR 14383-2?
Which obstacles and rejections did the committee have to face during the developing process?
2. The self-conception of the CEN committee concerning the Norm 14383-2 at present
Under what procedural conditions does the Norm CEN/TR 14383-2 develop?
Sociology of law: What is the future potential of the Norm in general? In what way is a European norm distinguished from European law? What follows from that special position in the European building laws?
Which lobby-groups have been involved in the development of the CEN/TR 14383-2?
What is expected of the members-states? In what way shall they implement the Norm 14383-2 in their countries/cities? How do members of the committee picture the future of urban planning under considerations of crime prevention?
3. Practical applications in the member states
How do representatives in national public administration see the chances and conditions of realisation of the guidelines developed by the CEN?
4. In-depth analysis in selected member states
Based upon information gained in part 3 case studies will be selected and evaluated according to the guidelines in CEN/TR 14383-2 to study the applicability of the recommendations given in the Norm and the variety of applications.
Study the “control cultures” in given urban environments and specific social situations
