Where can offenders be found when they are not committing crimes? A cross-sectional survey of British police officers on non-crime locations.

To date, the bulk of research on place and crime has concentrated on crime scene locations and home addresses of both victims and perpetrators. Beyond these locations, less is known about where offenders can be found during regular, non-criminal activity. These 'non-crime locations' provide information about offenders' lifestyles, their relationships with co-offenders, their preferred spots, and the places beyond the spatiotemporal boundaries of the crime where they may plan, manage, or deal with the aftermath of their behaviour. Yet there is a lack of systematic evidence, with the available research relying on local ethnographic designs, small samples or both, as access to such data was limited. This study utilises a novel approach by relying on the professional experience of intelligence police officers assigned to deal with serious and organised crime in the West Midlands County of the United Kingdom to determine the whereabouts of three types of non-crime locations: (a) hangout spots, (b) recruitment spots and (c) contraband hideout spots. Results suggest that offenders frequently visit gyms, specific restaurants, or private residences (not unlike locations where normative people hang out), and new members can be recruited anywhere. Drugs and firearms are strategically hidden near vulnerable persons. According to police officers, offenders are unconcerned by surveillance in these spots and choose venues not usually owned by criminal groups. Theoretical, methodological, and practical implications are discussed.

Regular self-weighing to promote weight maintenance after intentional weight loss: a quasi-randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Many overweight people take action to lose weight but most regain this weight. PURPOSE: To examine the effectiveness of a weight maintenance intervention focused on regular self-weighing after receiving a 12-week weight loss programme. METHODS: Quasi-randomized controlled trial of 3768 obese or overweight men and women. The intervention group (n = 3290) received two telephone calls, the offer of free weighing scales, encouragement to weigh themselves weekly and record this on a card. The main outcome was change in weight between 3 and 12 months. RESULTS: Using intention to treat analysis both groups regained weight; however, the intervention group on average regained 1.23 kg, whereas the control group regained 1.83 kg. Adjusting for covariates resulted in a mean difference of 0.68 kg (95% CI 0.12, 1.24) at 12-month follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Encouraging people who have recently lost weight to weigh themselves regularly prevents some weight regain.

Comparison of range of commercial or primary care led weight reduction programmes with minimal intervention control for weight loss in obesity: lighten Up randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of a range of weight management programmes in terms of weight loss. DESIGN: Eight arm randomised controlled trial. SETTING: Primary care trust in Birmingham, England. PARTICIPANTS: 740 obese or overweight men and women with a comorbid disorder identified from general practice records. INTERVENTIONS: Weight loss programmes of 12 weeks' duration: Weight Watchers; Slimming World; Rosemary Conley; group based, dietetics led programme; general practice one to one counselling; pharmacy led one to one counselling; choice of any of the six programmes. The comparator group was provided with 12 vouchers enabling free entrance to a local leisure (fitness) centre. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was weight loss at programme end (12 weeks). Secondary outcomes were weight loss at one year, self reported physical activity, and percentage weight loss at programme end and one year. RESULTS: Follow-up data were available for 658 (88.9%) participants at programme end and 522 (70.5%) at one year. All programmes achieved significant weight loss from baseline to programme end (range 1.37 kg (general practice) to 4.43 kg (Weight Watchers)), and all except general practice and pharmacy provision resulted in significant weight loss at one year. At one year, only the Weight Watchers group had significantly greater weight loss than did the comparator group (2.5 (95% confidence interval 0.8 to 4.2) kg greater loss,). The commercial programmes achieved significantly greater weight loss than did the primary care programmes at programme end (mean difference 2.3 (1.3 to 3.4) kg). The primary care programmes were the most costly to provide. Participants allocated to the choice arm did not have better outcomes than those randomly allocated to a programme. CONCLUSIONS: Commercially provided weight management services are more effective and cheaper than primary care based services led by specially trained staff, which are ineffective. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN25072883.

A randomised controlled trial to compare a range of commercial or primary care led weight reduction programmes with a minimal intervention control for weight loss in obesity: the Lighten Up trial.

BACKGROUND: Developed countries are facing a huge rise in the prevalence of obesity and its associated chronic medical problems. In the UK Primary Care Trusts are charged with addressing this in the populations they serve, but evidence about the most effective ways of delivering services is not available. The aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness of a range of weight loss programmes for obese patients in primary care and to determine the characteristics of patients who respond to an invitation to a free weight management programme. METHODS/DESIGN: Lighten Up is a randomised controlled trial comparing a range of 12-week commercial and NHS weight reduction programmes with a comparator group who are provided with 12 vouchers enabling free entrance to a local leisure centre. The weight reduction programmes are: (i) Weight Watchers, (ii) Slimming World, (iii) Rosemary Conley, (iv) a group-based dietetics-led programme (Size Down), (v) general practice one-to-one counselling, (vi) pharmacy-led one-to-one counselling, (vii) choice of any of the 6 programmes. People with obesity or overweight with a co-morbid disorder are invited to take part by a letter from their general practitioner. The sample size is 740 participants.The primary outcome is weight loss at programme-end (3 months). Secondary outcomes are weight-loss at one year, self-reported physical activity at 3 and 12 months follow-up and percentage weight-loss at 3 months and one year. DISCUSSION: This trial will provide evidence about the effectiveness of a range of different weight management programmes in a primary care population. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN25072883.