Preventing crime in Australia 1990 - 2002: a selected register of crime prevention projects

Conclusions

It is a commonly held view that 'traditional' policing and criminal justice systems are not reducing crime rates in Australia. This has resulted in the implementation of 'new' crime prevention measures aimed at combating rising levels of crime. In this publication an analysis of some Australian crime prevention projects since 1990 was undertaken. The vast majority of these projects had a developmental crime prevention focus, were undertaken during the 1990's, were concerned with crimes of violence, targeted youth, and were funded by a variety of different sources. The number of projects carried out within each state was proportionate to population size and many were evaluated systematically.

Clearly, crime prevention in Australia is a highly complex area of criminology in which theorising, research, practice and evaluation are subject to vigorous debate and critique. It is not the purpose of this publication to comment on or to critique the projects described, but rather simply to identify and to describe the projects in question. In doing so we highlight the efforts of those involved in Australian crime prevention and acknowledge their substantial contribution to contemporary criminal justice.