Grapevine was first trialled in the north west of England in 2006. The region was and is among the hot-spots of robberies, often with violence, against cash in transit deliveries.
The aim was to offer a single point of contact for Post Office branches and cash in transit staff so that they could report suspicious activity, in a timely way. After this trial, Grapevine was rolled out nationally in January 2007. Grapevine is owned and funded by the Post Office but is operated and managed by a Manchester-based private company, Professional Witnesses Limited (PWL). Post Office sub-postmasters and other staff are encouraged to report any suspicious activity immediately to Grapevine; as a result, post offices or Cash and valuables in transit staff (CVIT) in the area of the intelligence may act to prevent crime. This is usually achieved by simultaneously sending an immediate text alert to those who have registered their mobile number. This is not only confined to Post Office staff and can be utilised by any business. Again, the organisers seek to distribute time-critical information. The Post Office is seeking other stake-holders to broaden its effectiveness.
Sensitive
Grapevine works with all UK police forces in checking the details of any vehicle which may have raised the suspicions of Post Office staff and other financial institutions. All intelligence is handled in accordance with the ACPO (Association of Chief Police Officers) National Intelligence Model, a recognised standard for the handling, storing and dissemination of intelligence throughout the police. Realising that intelligence may have been submitted through sensitive sources, Grapevine intelligence officers make a risk assessment which could involve deploying PWL’s own front line people.
Database
All reports of suspicious activity are entered into a database which may identify similar suspicious activity and emerging trends – only accredited police staff or security personnel are allowed to do this. After just one year of operation, more than 5000 mobile ’phones had been registered to receive text messages. That’s not only Post Office workers, but franchised and others such as banks and their security teams, so they can cascade info to their colleagues. John Scott, head of security at the Post Office, told Retail Security: "It’s engaged with our sub-postmasters; it’s starting to provide a more secure environment for them, and demonstrates that the post office is taking their safety, their customers’ and employee safety seriously."
Ops
Among senior people at PWL are founder Trevor Barton now chairman, and Peter Aaronson, Group Operations Director. Both are former senior Greater Manchester Police officers. The company’s surveillance vehicles have gone from an original three to the modern fleet of 25. The aim: to provide a visual deterrent to any potential robbery.
