b'hard truthsHoliday securitykeeping it safe the final checklistCloseandlockalldoorsandwindows,and dont have hidden keys anywhere obvious outside.Its not just locks and alarms that can keep Televisionsandcomputersshouldntyour home safe this summer.be visible from outside; hide them.Lockawayofficialpersonaldocumentsand financial details along with door Well-def inedNo easy access and car keysmake these impossible main entry to upper windows.to find by anyone but you and yours.Arrangetohavenewspaperdeliveriesstopped, and for neighbours to clear yourletterboxandmowthefront lawn if youll be away for long.Neverleaveamessageontheanswerphoneorsocialmediasuchas Facebook about being away.ReseneGondwanathe housing, serves to provide this, as well as A neat appearancelending a rural community feel.deters taggers andNo high frontNo high treesBeing seen doing a criminal act is not high vandalism.fence to let burglarsobscuring the windows.on a malevolent persons list of priorities, work unseen.says Graham.FellowlandscapearchitectAndrewCraig WitsalargeestateonAre big trees or shrubs obscuring views ofagrees that preserving uninterrupted sight-hether the edge of a forest, or a tinyyour windows or doors from the street? Islines over your property is an age-old security apartment in a happening partyour garden dark and solitary at night? Or isprinciple.Itstheprospect/refugetheory of the CBD, your own pad functions a bitit well-lit, overlooked by the neighbours, andwhich says humanity likes to sit on the edges like a personal security blanket. Which is whyeasily seen from the street? looking inward, watching for both prospective the experience of being burgled or intrudedthreatsandsocial/romanticopportunities. upon is so disquieting.Havingawell-maintainedpropertysendsIf these seating spots are warm, sheltered outsignalswhichdeterintruders.Thisisand with an open visual aspect, security is If you are about to enter the design phase forcalledBrokenWindowsTheory,inwhichenhanced.your new abode or its landscaping, why notvandals can see an unkempt property as an incorporate features which deter criminals?invitation to do further damage. An obviousIn a domestic setting, why not make use of The idea that design is a successful deterrentdemeanour of pride in your place says yourepassingtrafficasasurveillanceasset?Its to crime is not new. Several decades ago itlikelytobehereoften,andbeawareofactually beneficial to avoid long stretches of wasdubbedCPTED,orCrimePreventionunexpected changes. solid, high fencing, particularly between the house and street. Why not use wrought iron ThroughEnvironmentalDesign.CityandChristchurchlandscapearchitectGrahamand personally design its lines for a distinctive regionalcouncilsroutinelyadoptCPTEDDensem is well-versed in the principles of safeeffect? This has the added bonus of not being principles to make their public parks, reservesdesign. After recent involvement in the safea typical tagging target.and commercial spaces as safe as possible.design of Canterburys alpine village, Castle Startbythinkinglikeacriminalintruder.Hill,heiskeentopreserveunobstructedPerceiving anewWhat opportunities does your home present?sight-lines. In Castle Hill, the lack of residentialGo out to the street and try to see your Does it have a creepy, over-grown ambience?fencing, with reserves threaded throughouthome for the first time from every vantage 62'