The ACS has welcomed the launch of the Home Office’s ‘Winter of Action’, aimed at tackling retail crime and antisocial behaviour.
The initiative will see officers using hotspot patrols, backed by swift and visible enforcement. Forces will also adopt locally tailored approaches, working with retailers, business groups and community organisations.
It aims to clamp down on shop theft and street crime to keep communities safe over the busy Christmas period.
The Winter of Action builds on the Safer Streets Summer initiative, which took place in almost 650 town centres and resulted in over 16,000 arrests and fines, mostly for shop theft and antisocial behaviour.
It also increased visible patrols by almost 20% compared with the previous year, largely in town centres.
“Shoplifting and antisocial behaviour are tearing at the fabric of our communities,” said home secretary Shabana Mahmood.
“This winter we are launching a crime-fighting blitz with police patrolling our high streets across the country. This is part of our wider plans to fight crime with 3,000 more police on the beat by the spring to catch criminals and make our communities safe.”
The launch of the Winter of Action initiative comes as the ACS revealed new data showing that more than half of independent retailers rate their relationship with their neighbourhood policing team as ‘very good’.
ACS CEO James Lowman said: “We welcome the launch of the Winter of Action initiative, which will put more police officers in town centres and neighbourhood parades to tackle shop theft and antisocial behaviour that is blighting communities.
“Local shops continue to face unacceptable levels of theft, but we are starting to see positive signs of a stronger response from police forces. Encouragingly, over half of independent convenience stores (52%) now rate their relationship with their neighbourhood policing team as very good.
“It is essential that police forces maintain this momentum and deliver targeted action against prolific offenders who repeatedly steal from shops and undermine community safety.
“Convenience stores invest over £5,000 per year in security measures to protect customers, colleagues, and the communities they serve. This initiative is a vital step toward ensuring those efforts are supported by effective enforcement.”
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