Neighbourhood as a Policing Delivery Unit

This chapter explores the concept of ‘neighbourhood’ and how such constructs come to be associated with particular types of social problem, especially crime and disorder. This includes how neighbourhoods are defined and reconfigured for different audiences and for different purposes, using empirical data to show how and why members of the public choose to self-define their neighbourhood boundaries in certain ways. The discussion elaborates on why areas become labelled as ‘problem neighbourhoods’ or ‘no-go areas’ and engages in a detailed investigation of antisocial behaviour as a key focus for Neighbourhood Policing interventions. Drawing upon analysis of how victims perceive and are harmed by antisocial behaviour, it provides a critical account of how far antisocial behaviour can and should be conceptualized as ‘a neighbourhood problem of a problem neighbourhood’ that both resides in, and should be resolved by, communities and their police. We discuss the implications this approach has for the effective delivery of local policing and multi-agency problem-solving interventions within the neighbourhood unit