The Winter and January Sales are one of the busiest and important times of year for retailers right across the West Midlands.
But as shoppers take to our High Streets so unfortunately it seems do shop lifters – in increasing numbers!
Nationally retail theft* has risen significantly [29%] in recent years [see Figure 1] a problem recognised by the government as having a serious impact on retail businesses, their employees and local economies.
Figure 1: Number of shoplifting offences recorded by police forces in England and Wales, year ending March 2003 to the year ending June 2024
Yet one small market town – Atherstone – with its bustling high street of independent retail businesses, supermarkets cafes and bars, has managed to buck this national trend
One year ago, [June 2023] shoplifting rates in Atherstone were on the rise, at around 18/1000 and running at around four times the County average.
Now thanks to their state-of-the-art CCTV network, manned by a team of experienced operators with direct links with to local shops and the police, utilising the TownWatch radio scheme and new DISC app, this year shoplifting rates in the town centre have fallen over the last year by 43%.
Figure 2: Shoplifting Rate for Atherstone Central
Town Councillor, Gwyn Short who chairs the CCTV partnership group [a group established between Atherstone Town Council, North Warwickshire Borough Council and the Safer Neighbourhood Team (North Warwickshire East) to jointly manage the CCTV network.]
We know that many small businesses in our high street cannot afford to lose thousands of pounds through retail theft or to hire security staff.
This “real time approach to tackling crime in our town prevents retail crime before it happens, and fast-tracks a police response when incidents happen “
Borough Councillor Ray Jarvis [Chair of the Safer Communities Committee, North Warwickshire Borough Council] added
“As councils we have worked together over several years with the local police to establish this new system and we are proud of what has been achieved. As well as being a lovely and historic place to visit, Atherstone is now a much safer and secure place to shop – and this reduction in crime has benefited both local businesses and shoppers “
*Retail crime is defined as “criminal activities that specifically target retail establishments, such as shops, supermarkets, or shopping centres”
