In Peterborough city centre, Cambridgeshire Police are to set up a shop as part of an effort to help retailers tackle shoplifters. The dummy in Bridge Street will “sell” clothing and bric-a-brac. But its only real purpose will be to train retail and security staff in how to prevent theft: by spotting and apprehending offenders and laying out the shop in the most effective way.
There will also be training in conflict management, civil recovery options and statement writing. The shelves will be stocked and volunteers will act as customers and suspected shoplifters. It will not be open to the public.
The initiative on Wednesday (September 11) is being supported by the Safer Peterborough partnership, which has provided the unit free for 12 weeks. Staff from nine retailers are expected to attend the first workshop and, if it is a success, more will be held. The faux merchandise donated for the shop will be given to a local charity when it closes.
Sergeant Jo Reeves said: “Shoplifting is not a victimless crime and we are committed to tackling it in Peterborough city centre. Helping retailers spot offenders or prevent the crime happening in the first place is an important part of our campaign. Theft from shops can be seen as a relatively easy crime to commit but our aim, in partnership with retailers and the Safer Peterborough partnership, is to make life a lot harder for thieves. We hope that this will be the first of many such workshops so we can offer as many retailers as possible the opportunity to attend.
“If it proves a success and receives positive feedback we hope to repeat it to cover the whole city.”
Any retailers who would like to be involved in the initiative should contact Crime Reduction Officer Beverley Makin on email [email protected]
