The appeal of rural crime: the eye of the beholder

Rural policing is a socio-political construct: current structures, investment and expectations are based on inherited notions from a previous industrial age. Urban centric bias influences central Government spending formulas, leaving those not within cities with a lesser service offer. In the meantime, part of the population entertains the appealing image that rural life, in comparison to the urban, is idyllic. However, it is apparent that predatory criminality targets the isolation and vulnerability within the countryside, not least because there is less safeguarding and reactive protection there than within urban zones. Taking a solution orientated approach, fresh thinking is offered about how services could be organised around people, and their changing habits, rather than tradition. Through a fairer nationwide distribution of investment and resources, life choices, and services, could be enhanced, to redefine what we currently label ‘rural policing’.

This is the author's post-acceptance version and is not to be cited.