ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed the Home Secretary’s Safer Streets Initiative on town centre crime and anti-social behaviour, calling for meaningful action to tackle retail crime, anti-social behaviour and rogue traders.

The  Safer Streets Summer Blitz, launched today (4th July) as part of the Government’s Plan for Change, will benefit over 500 towns across England. Plans outlined in the initiative include increased police patrols near shops and community centres, as well as local action to tackle high street crime and anti-social behaviour such as banning perpetrators from hotspots.

The initiative acts as phase one of the government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, which aims to tackle high street crime and restore faith in police by increasing the presence of police officers in every community to protect town centres, businesses, and the people who live and work there.

ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “We welcome the Home Secretary’s Safer Streets Initiative which brings a much-needed focus on the safety of shoppers, employees, and business owners in our communities. Thousands of convenience stores trade in town centres, but many others operate in neighbourhoods, housing estates and villages. It’s important that efforts to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour are spread to all the areas where businesses trade and where people live, work, shop and socialise.” 

The announcement comes as a  BBC investigation  found widespread illicit trading of cigarettes on high streets, with Trading Standards officers ‘frustrated’ with the powers available to them and the resources they have to tackle the problem. ACS has previously highlighted that Trading Standards teams across the country need an additional £140m over the next five years to be able to make a difference in communities.

Mr Lowman continued: “Making our streets and parades safer isn’t just about police presence, it’s also about ensuring that illegal selling from rogue traders is stamped out through robust enforcement. Responsible retailers are fed up with losing business to these criminals and feel powerless to stop them, which is why we need to give Trading Standards the resources they need to go in and shut down illicit traders.

“When someone breaks the law they should face the consequences. For too often, criminal activity that hurts local shops has gone broadly unpunished. There’s no point introducing new laws if the ones we have already aren’t being enforced.”

This week also marks  #ShopKind Week , which encourages kind behaviour in shops and acknowledges the essential role of shopworkers in our communities, raising awareness about the scale of abuse that they face. The campaign is supported by the Home Office, Usdaw, the British Retail Consortium, and leading high street businesses like Curry’s, Greggs, Boots and the Co-operative.