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Toolbox - street gang prevention

The focus of this publication is twofold. First, it outlines the phenomenon of street gangs. Street gangs, or youth gangs, can take different forms in different countries or even cities. Starting from a European consensus definition, this Toolbox sheds light on the most important properties of street gangs. Special attention is devoted to the way in which gangs make use of the internet and social media. Secondly, the paper details three types of preventive approaches to youth gang problems: social work and welfare approaches to prevent recruitment into gangs, focussed deterrence policing strategies to reduce levels of gang violence, and exit programmes to stimulate rehabilitation of gang members and reduce recidivism. For each type of intervention, it looks at what we might or might not expect from it, what the difficulties are in successfully implementing it, and its overall effectiveness.

This toolbox was written in the light of the French Presidency of the EUCPN.
Published: June 2022.