Street Warden News

A major reduction in town centre shoplifting has been one of the main successes of the street wardens scheme in Great Yarmouth.

The street wardens have added an extra dimension to the Town Centre Partnership’s existing ShopSafe Scheme, and work closely with shop managers and staff, store detectives, the police, and CCTV operators.

Their efforts have ensured that there is more support on hand for retailers who may on occasions have to tackle aggressive shoplifters, and they have had a remarkable effect.

"We’ve always had an exclusion order scheme as part of our initiative to reduce crime, and if a person is caught shoplifting in one of our members’ stores they’re automatically banned from other members’ stores for six months," says town centre manager Jonathan Newman.

"We’ve steadily reduced the number of people on exclusion orders because there are fewer people reoffending. The street wardens have been so effective that the shoplifters are not coming in. We’re looking more at a hard core of persistent offenders now.

"The success we have had is particularly pleasing given that stronger penalties for offences such as burglary and car crime have led many criminals to view shoplifting as a softer option to get money to finance a drugs habit – which is why most shoplifters offend."

The street wardens’ big advantage is that they soon build up an a detailed knowledge of likely offenders – and can quickly use radio links to warn nearby stores to be on their guard.

"It makes a huge difference," says Jonathan. "As soon as a potential shoplifter knows they have been seen it really doesn’t make sense for them to commit a crime when there’s every chance they’re being watched.

"If they do persist in stealing a DVD, or whatever, the likelihood is that the store detective or shop manager will follow them out of the shop. They think about running away – and that’s when they see the street warden walking towards them."