DOCO of the Year – Danii Wohler Recognised for Outstanding Team Work and Crime Prevention Strategies

Danii is this year’s ATLAS‘25 DOCO (Designing out Crime Officer) of the year and Police CPI wanted to chat to her about her work and why she was nominated…

Congratulations Danii, what do you think about your nomination and winning?

I felt like I was having an out-of-body experience when I heard the nomination and received the award at ATLAS. There were so many talented DOCOs in the room who have worked on bigger projects than me but my Sergeant Paul Griffiths wrote such lovely words about me. He’s so supportive and empowers his whole team, - he’s a great boss.

How long have you been a DOCO and what did you do before?

I started out as a 21-year-old behind the police enquiry desk in Lancashire and I’ve worked my way up doing various jobs over the last 19 years. In my last role I was a supervisor and managed and oversaw the large and busy intelligence department which I loved. HR then asked if I’d like to apply for the role of a DOCO (Designing out Crime Officer). I’d never even heard of the role before and it was totally out of my comfort zone but I went for it - and here I am, four years later.

Was it difficult transitioning to the role at first?

I had so many questions when I first started and there was always something new to learn. So I began compiling  a document to record all my notes and updates and as I’m neurodiverse, having everything organised in one place really helped. What began as my ‘Idiot’s Guide to being a DOCO’ has become an invaluable resource. I now share it with the North West DOCO group I belong to and we all contribute to the working document which is now known as the ‘DOCO Bible’.

Now you’re in Merseyside as a DOCO?

I am. At ATLAS 23’ Merseyside approached me and asked me to apply for a vacancy they had. As it’s always been my dream to work in Liverpool I jumped at the chance - I love the city. I’m still working with Lancs too, as I help support the DOCO there, Anna Baybutt, who is brilliant by the way.

I’m helping oversee a large project I started in early 2024, a £8.3m regeneration project and redevelopment of the Bacup Market -part of the Bacup 2040 Vision by Rossendale Borough Council. As I was brought on in the early stages I was able to influence the architects and developers to commit to SBD Gold standard. There’s an existing road that’s a challenge to ‘design out’ as it’s a thoroughfare that attracts criminal activity so Anna’s been working hard to ensure there are no blind spots and linking me in. It’s a huge project but she’s doing a great job.

You also help share your knowledge to a wider North West DOCO group don’t you?

Yes, I was recently appointed as chair of the North West Designing out Crime group and we support each other with information, share best practices and tips. In fact the biggest tip I would give to new DOCOs is to network with others. You can’t learn everything on your own in isolation, it’s important to reach out to ask others and bounce ideas around.

We’re a group of about 20 in the North West but we also support a couple of colleagues from outside the area. Graham Kavanagh operates as a one-man-band in An Garda Síochána, Ireland, and Sarah Williams is from the Isle of Man.

What do you love about your being a DOCO?

I love partnership working – what I mean by that is building relationships. For example I was asked to comment on a park with an ongoing anti-social issue and drug dealing, I involved the local authority and other partners and together we have worked out a strategy. It’s so important to work as one instead of operating in silos as it’s so much more effective. I built strong working relationships with the 14 different local authorities in Lancashire, now my challenge is to do the same in Merseyside.

Are there any interesting projects you’re working on at the moment?

I’m working on a large regeneration project of Huyton Town Centre, Merseyside, known as ‘St Michaels Place’ which is part of Knowsley Borough Council’s 10 year development plan. It’s sadly an area with a lot of organised crime, anti-social behaviour and social depravity. More than seven acres of land with old council buildings will be demolished to be replaced with a hotel, commercial space, and 72 new affordable apartments along with green spaces and community areas.

I’ve influenced the architects to commit to SBD Gold standards throughout. I’ve also been instrumental in the design of the new green park space based on SBD principles and advice and guidance of Dr Anna Barker. She advocates for green parks and spaces to be designed or made safer for women and girls, things like creating open areas, accessible community spaces, low hedges, lighting and CCTV.

In your role as a DOCO what’s the most unusual project you’ve worked on?

Part of my job covered rural areas of East Lancashire and I’d sometimes get asked to comment on building and development of slurry stores – structures where farmers collect animal waste, it became a bit of a running joke in my team! But the most unusual was a donkey store. You do get funny requests.

One of my most memorable and interesting projects though was conducting a security survey of the historic ruins of Clitheroe Castle in Lancashire. Overlooking the town, it’s a well-preserved 12th century Norman keep, rumoured to have once been a jail housing King Henry VI during the War of the Roses. It’s now a Grade II listed building but was originally built in Motte and Bailey style with what was described as a 'strong and defensive structure', has become a problematic hotspot for Local Policing teams due to anti-social behaviour, criminal damage and trespass issues. I had to get my thinking cap on with this one and work closely with the Heritage Team at the local council to ensure any security measures were delivered in a sympathetic, reversible way, to prevent attacks by modern day means! We talk about sustainability and removing opportunities for future crime as DOCO's... but I don’t think anyone expects to have to come up with security strategies 800 years into the future! 

What don’t most people know about you?

Well…I’m actually in David Beckham’s memoir ‘David Beckham’ and feature as one of his fans. I always pull this fun fact out when I have to introduce myself when I’m on a course – although I usually forget to mention it’s me and 10,000 other fans! We appear in a massive collage.

Well done again Danii, we will leave you with some final words from Sergeant Paul Griffiths’ nomination…

Danii, thank you for your commitment and dedication this year to both Lancashire and Merseyside. Your desire to support and develop every DOCO around you is a testament to your passion for the role. I look forward to working with you and shaping the landscape of Merseyside for many years to come.

What is Secured by Design?

Secured by Design (SBD) is the official police security initiative that works to improve the security of buildings and their immediate surroundings to provide safe places to live, work, shop and visit.

SBD’s product based accreditation scheme – the Police Preferred Specification - provides a recognised standard for all security products that can deter and reduce crime.

There are currently many hundreds of companies producing thousands of attack resistant crime prevention products, across 30 different crime categories, which have achieved Police Preferred Specification.

Improved security

Developers around the UK can achieve SBD awards for incorporating crime prevention measures and techniques into their developments in all kinds of building sectors, such as residential, education, health, transport, commercial, retail, sport and leisure. Indeed, SBD can be used as evidence to discharge third-party obligations under Part Q of Schedule 1 (Security) to the English Building Regulations, the Scottish Building Standard 4.13 (Security) and Welsh Building Regulations Part Q (Security – Dwellings). These awards are gained by working with police Designing Out Crime Officers (DOCOs), who advise architects, developers and local authority planners long before construction begins – and continue to provide advice and guidance until the development is complete.

Academic and other research shows that improving standards of security in brand new and refurbished properties, helps deter and reduce crime. Reducing crime and the fear of crime has direct links to better physical and mental well-being, such as with regard to high volume crimes like domestic abuse.   

The built environment influences the behaviour of people who work, live, socialise or simply pass through. SBD seeks to create environments where the law-abiding feel safe and secure whilst at the same time causing the criminal or anti-social to feel vulnerable to detection and thereby influence behaviour in a positive way. This continues to be a key objective for SBD.

Find out more about Secured by Design Developers Awards here.

SBD Design Guides

SBD has produced a series of authoritative Design Guides to assist the building, design and construction industry to incorporate security into developments to comply with the Building Regulations in England, Scotland and Wales and meet the requirements of SBD.

These Design Guides, available to download for free at the SBD website, have been updated over the years to keep pace with changing patterns of criminal behaviour and advances in building design and new technology.

They are a valuable source of reference to architects, developers, self-builders, local authority planners and police officers and cover a range of building sectors, including residential, education, health, transport and commercial. 

Police Designing Out Crime Officers

DOCOs provide specialist crime reduction advice to the public, businesses and colleagues about premises or property security. They also work with building developers, architects, and council planning departments regarding new developments and refurbishments, to 'design out' crimes like burglary and anti-social behaviour (ASB) by providing advice on street lighting, building and street layout, entrances and exits - as well as preferred standards and specifications for doors, windows, and locks, under the Secured by Design initiative. 

DOCOs are able to deliver site specific interventions required to help design out crime in areas that suffer disproportionately from acquisitive crime, based on local crime pattern analysis, police, local authority and community engagement and the collective knowledge and experience of how criminals behave.

DOCOs are specialist problem solvers, working every day to make a positive difference, changing lives for the better and helping people to be safe and secure in their homes.

Contact details for local DOCOs can be found here.