Smarter Patrols, Safer Areas

In any industry where performance matters, resources are concentrated where they produce the greatest results. But in modern policing and security, logic has been replaced with equity mapping, diversity audits, and the illusion that every location deserves equal attention, regardless of threat level.

The results speak for themselves, more crime in fewer places, and fewer patrols where they’re needed most.

Crime is not evenly distributed. It clusters, by time, by geography, and by offender profile. A small fraction of areas, and an even smaller fraction of repeat offenders, are responsible for the majority of antisocial behaviour, property damage, and street-level violence. This isn’t speculative. It’s statistical law, proven across decades of field research and reinforced daily by those on the ground. And yet, patrol patterns remain politically designed, not practically aligned.

The logic of hotspot policing is not controversial. If a location sees more crime, it requires more attention. If certain times see spikes in violence, then staffing should increase accordingly. If a repeat offender is known to frequent a mall, bus station, or late-night precinct, then presence should be visible, targeted, and unrelenting.

But instead of precision, we’re told to embrace parity, patrolling quiet neighbourhoods at the same frequency as high-crime corridors, so as not to appear “biased.” This is how security fails. Not by lack of manpower, but by deliberate misallocation in the name of optics.

Smarter patrols are not just about where, they're about when, how, and why. Surveillance logs, incident mapping, guard reports, and access control analytics all point to patterns. But too many decision-makers ignore these patterns in favour of spreadsheets that please consultants, bureaucrats and pacify activists. Meanwhile, the guards on the midnight shift already know where the problems start and where they will spill over next.

Strategic deployment is not profiling. It's risk-based realism. It means accepting that some places invite more criminal attention than others, not because of their demographics, but because of their vulnerabilities. Like poor lighting, isolated access points, foot traffic without oversight, or nearby gathering spots that attract repeat offenders.

A shopping centre with a history of youth disturbances every Thursday at 4:00 p.m. doesn’t need another committee, it needs a uniformed presence by 3:45. A bus station with a string of assaults between 7:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. doesn’t need more signage, it needs targeted visibility during those exact hours. A council carpark with repeated vandalism reports on weekend nights doesn’t need a policy review, it needs boots on the ground, eyes on the exits, and zero tolerance for loitering.

What’s needed is a return to deterrence by design. Not the design of buildings, but of patrol strategy.

Smarter patrols reduce crime not by spreading resources thinner, but by applying pressure where it matters most. This isn't “over-policing.” It's efficient guardianship. Offenders, like everyone else, respond to incentives. If they know a location is unmonitored at 8:00 p.m., that's when they’ll strike. If they know a uniform appears unpredictably and consistently at that hour, they'll move on, or better yet, stop altogether.

And here’s the uncomfortable truth for policymakers detached from ground-level reality,  the people who live in these hotspots, the store owners, cleaners, commuters, parents, want more patrols. They don’t see uniformed presence as oppressive. They see it as a signal that someone still gives a damn about order.

Smarter patrols make safer areas. Not because they promise utopia, but because they deliver interruption, the most undervalued asset in crime prevention. They don’t wait for incident reports. They prevent the incident.

And in security, that’s not just strategy. It’s duty.  

From the author.

The opinions and statements are those of Sam Wilks and do not necessarily represent whom Sam Consults or contracts to. Sam Wilks is a skilled and experienced Security and Risk Consultant with 3 decades of expertise in the fields of Real estate, Security, and the hospitality/gaming industry. Sam has trained over 1,000 entry level security personnel, taught defensive tactics, weapons training and handcuffs to policing personnel and the public. His knowledge and practical experience have made him a valuable asset to many organisations looking to enhance their security measures and provide a safe and secure environment for their clients and staff.