Renaisi were commissioned by the London Borough of Redbridge to carry out research around establishing an evidence base to support the creation of a cumulative impact zone in Ilford town centre and Seven Kings.
Redbridge Council have received numerous complaints from residents about problems associated with licensed premises in both areas. It was felt that current licensing arrangements were insufficient to prevent further detrimental development of licensed premises and the council are therefore seeking the extra powers that a cumulative impact zone would provide them in order to counteract the problem.
The objectives of the study are to:
- Identify perceived and actual levels of crime and disorder in Ilford and Seven Kings
- Demonstrate that a notable amount of crime and disorder is caused by customers of licensed premises, or that risk factors are such that the area is nearing cumulative impact
- Evidence that crime and disorder is having a negative impact on the growth and sustainability of the night time economy in the defined areas
Renaisi has been working to capture high quality, representative data from Ilford and Seven Kings using methods such as focus groups, stakeholder interviews and evening anti-social behaviour counts. Desk top research has also formed an important part of the study as it has allowed Renaisi to establish actual crime levels and benchmark them against competing town centres. All of this will result in Renaisi gaining a clear view of the actual and perceived crime spots in the area, what needs to happen to make people feel safer, the extent to which crime and disorder effects the viability and success of evening businesses, and a SWOT analysis of the current evening and night time offer.
