ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the management of risk as a mode of policing practice. In particular, it explores the way in which policing applies the concept of risk to the problems of community safety and crime reduction. First, it discusses the concept of the risk society, reflecting upon the social conditions of late modernity. It argues that recognition of cultural diversity and differences in risk perception are important to the management of risk. Secondly, it reviews the development of crime prevention and community safety as ways of dealing with crime risk. This includes a discussion of a number of theories of crime prevention. The third section examines the specific trajectory of policing methods in relation to the management of risk. It compares policing which aims at the solving of problems with the more disciplinary ‘zero-tolerance’ approach to the reduction of crime. It also reviews claims which suggest that riskcommunication is the primary function of policing the risk society. Fourthly, it discusses efforts to develop a more holistic model of crime risk management. It reviews crackdown theory and other crime reduction strategies in the light of evidence-based practice and the ‘what works’ thesis. Finally, this chapter explores the role of partnerships and of public participation in community safety. It examines the impact of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 alongside a wider consideration of the objectives of central and local government. It discusses institutional methods for the management of risk and compares them with the ways in which citizens might manage risk.
