As featured a few times in the print edition of Professional Security, it’s more than two years since Liverpool Chamber of Commerce launched Business Crime Direct.
The project was the idea of the Safer Merseyside Partnership and sought to deliver crime reduction to Merseyside small businesses through a partnership with the Merseyside Police, and the delivery agents, the five Merseyside Chambers of Commerce. Employing six staff based in the Liverpool Chamber, the team has clocked up these achievements:<br>
– 1,007 individual risk assessments at small businesses<br>
– 254 individual target hardening grants totalling £107,000<br>
– 42 business cluster groups such as small retail radio watches, communal CCTV, ‘alleygating’ service roads, improved lighting etc.<br>
– Successful bids for city centre / town centre crime reduction posts for Liverpool and Birkenhead from Single Regeneration Budget (instigating intelligence led day time economy, night time and commercial sector initiatives)<br>
– Safer Shopping Award for Liverpool City Centre.<br>
– Project managed over œ360,000 worth of small retailers in deprived area schemes, with a further £175,000 to plan for in 2003/4.<br>
– Instigated security improvements to a total value of over œ750,000 including private match.<br>
– Put business crime on the local agendas.<br>
– Supplied research and case studies for the British Chambers of Commerce which has helped in making the case for a regional and national framework for business crime reduction with the Government.
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What they say
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Peter Jones, Manager of Business Crime Direct said: ‘I think we have proved that through strong partnership commitment, the Chambers of Commerce can deliver reductions in crimes impacting on businesses.’ The BCD project has continued to deliver its services with a temporary funding package from the European Regional Development Fund, pending their decision on a five year bid for their funding. Jones added: ‘We are very grateful to be able to continue the good work with Objective One funding. We are planning a comprehensive and co-ordinated network of intelligence led business watches based on all of Merseyside’s industrial and commercial areas However, that funding stream precludes us working with retailers to any great degree. Whilst we are well on the way to provide crime reduction co-ordinators for all of our major town centres, we believe the business sector with the greatest problems from crime, and especially anti social behaviour, are the small retailers in deprived wards. We shall continue to seek funding to find posts to champion their cause."
