Under Raid-control

The concept behind the newly-launched Raid-control initiative was first discussed back in July 2002 when an impressive Steering Group – comprising representatives from the private security industry, the insurance and retail sectors, Trade Associations and the police service – was formed to work out the fine detail on what is likely to become a pivotal project in the fight against commercial theft.

In simple terms, the objective of Raid-control (which is supported by the British Retail Consortium and the British Security Industry Association) is to reduce the risk of retail businesses becoming the victims of robbery, and to identify and detect those responsible through the raising of standards.

Raising standards of security awareness among members of staff, the quality of robbery prevention equipment and procedures and raising standards of identification detection systems are prime drivers.

It's also very much about increasing awareness among potential offenders that Raid-control branded premises have taken the necessary measures to reduce the opportunities for committing robbery, reduce the pay-off and raise the risk of arrest.

The essence of Raid-control is that it will offer police Crime Prevention Officers up and down the country a real tool with which to reduce violent crime. It will enable police forces to be both pro-active and reactive. Pro-active in addressing crime 'hotspots' or to support local, intelligence-led crime prevention initiatives. Reactive when attending one of the 13,000-plus annual commercial robberies in the UK as a means to reducing re-victimisation.

Ultimately, the end result will be the same. Increased security leading to reduced crime.

Three steps to retail security
The Raid-control procedure – as unveiled by the Greater Manchester Police at the tail end of last month prior to the commencement of its own six-month pilot study – comprises three basic steps. First, police will be provided with a specifically-designed risk assessment questionnaire that will identify the areas where additional security measures are required in any particular retail premises (in time this process will be computerised to reduce unnecessary paperwork), with emphasis on five key elements itemised on retail outlet window stickers:

• staff trained in raid awareness;
  
• time delay systems in use;
  
• cash on the premises is minimised;
  
• CCTV surveillance cameras are in operation;
  
• stolen cash/valuables on the premises are traceable.

Second, when the retail chain concerned matches up to the required security standards their premises will become Raid-control 'Police Certificated Premises'.

Lastly, the Raid-control initiative will then promote the brand both nationally and locally with the objective of raising awareness among the criminal fraternity that such premises are unattractive as targets.

A Raid-control pilot study has already taken place in Croydon, the background to which is something of a familiar story for security professionals in the retail sector. In the period spanning January to June last year there were 14 robberies at pharmacies across south London. All were violent in nature, with knives used to threaten pharmacy staff. On each occasion the target was cash.

Police intelligence suggested that there were as many as 30 individuals involved operating in two or three gangs, and co-ordinating their attacks across south London. Off-licences were also targeted by these groups, but pharmacies had never before been 'hit' in such volumes and in such an organised manner.

Security provision for retailers
Given that eight of the 14 robberies were in the London Borough of Croydon, it was Croydon Crime Prevention Officer Kevin Hitch who was duly drafted in to advise on security provisions for retailers.

Hitch told Security Management Today: "The robberies had sent shockwaves through the pharmaceutical community, and indeed the wider community in Croydon because these are businesses all-too-often owned and staffed by local people. My job was to find a cost-effective way of introducing security measures to premises that had very little protection in place because the only threat they'd protected against previously was shop theft."

The secretary of Croydon Local Pharmaceutical Committee – Andrew McCoig (of McCoig Pharmacies) – was a focal point for the fears of pharmacy owners in the Borough.

"As pharmacists we weren't used to dealing with this type of crime, and so we were soft targets," stated McCoig. The use of threatening weapons as part of the robberies was particularly frightening for the individuals involved, and led to a number of staff resigning which of course creates its own problems. Needless to say, we needed a quick solution."

Following on from visits to a number of the pharmacies that had been victims of robbery, Hitch determined that basic weaknesses in both security and procedures were common features. Given that the target of the robberies was cash, Hitch believed that till protection equipment was a 'must'.

With this in mind, he contacted the Metropolitan Police Service Flying Squad Crime Prevention Co-ordinator Alan Townsend and Digby Ram – director of IBP International and chair of the British Security Industry Association's dedicated Cash and Property Marking Section.

Raid-control will offer police Crime Prevention Officers up and down the country a real tool with which to reduce violent crime. It will enable police forces to be both pro-active and reactive. Pro-active in addressing crime ‘hotspots’

For their part, Townsend and Ram had already been involved in the national Banknote Watch initiative, aimed at reducing the circulation of stolen banknotes. They'd discussed the possibility of establishing an initiative specifically for the retail environment, and the Croydon pharmacy robberies presented the ideal opportunity to put their theory into practice.

The importance of staff training
Townsend and Ram came up with a series of measures designed to combat the specific risks associated with retail crime (the measures now known as Raid-control). They included staff training in raid awareness, time delay systems, cash minimised, cameras in operation and the use of cash staining systems such that any money stolen would be instantly traceable.

Financing courtesy of Communities Against Drugs (CAD) paid for the equipment and its installation, which cost under £2,000 per premises.

There are 68 pharmacies in the Croydon Borough, and 23 of them qualified for CAD funding. Of those 23, four couldn't be fitted with the Raid-control package because the tills were too close to the entrance (a distance of two metres is required in order for the cash staining systems to work, although the technology is now being adapted such that it can accommodate tills located near to store entrances).

Throughout June last year 19 pharmacies were fitted with Raid-control equipment and duly implemented the staff training package. Following on from completion, each premises was visited by a Crime Prevention Officer from Croydon Police to assess if they merited Raid-control status. All 19 were successful, and duly presented with window stickers to alert criminals to the security measures contained within. The stickers are said to be an important part of the deterrent.

To date, since Raid-control was introduced to the Croydon pharmacies there have been no more robberies. Indeed, one of the gangs suspected of being responsible for some of the robberies was arrested last June, which may well have been a contributory factor.

Reactions to Raid-control
So what has been the reaction to Raid-control from the Croydon pharmacists, the Local Pharmaceutical Committee, the Crime Prevention Officer tasked with implementing the package and the team manager at Croydon Police responsible for overseeing the Raid-control initiative?

Beran Patel – owner/pharmacist at the Brigstock Pharmacy on the Brigstock Road in Croydon – was the victim of a robbery in January of last year. Working alongside another member of staff, Beran was threatened by four masked raiders all wielding knives.

The attack took place shortly after Christmas, so there was plenty of money in the till (and in the back room where wages had been apportioned).

"We've experienced staffing problems since the robbery because people are understandably frightened," said Patel. "However, the security equipment that has been installed has brought some peace of mind, while the training has helped to address some of the complacency about crime that arises when you haven't been targeted before. For example, we keep a substantially smaller amount of cash on the premises now."

Andrew McCoig – owner of two pharmacies in Croydon that have been fitted with Raid-control measures – commented: "One of my premises was a victim of the spate of robberies. When I met with Kevin Hitch, I have to admit that I didn't expect too much from him. I certainly didn't expect the dedicated approach he adopted to solving our problem, and the innovative solution he proposed."

McCoig added: "Raid-control is an exciting approach to reducing crime. It is working for us, and I can see it working well for other retail premises as well."

Offering a pro-active solution
As the manager of this particular Raid-control initiative, Crime Prevention Officer Kevin Hitch is in a unique position to evaluate the scheme's impact thus far. "From a Crime Prevention Officer's point of view, Raid-control is an easy-to-use retail crime reduction package. That's something we've not had at our disposal before now," stressed Hitch.

"It's nice to be able to offer a pro-active solution, and the community really appreciates police involvement in this way," he continued. "It's all-too-easy to think of business crime as only affecting the business itself, but that business is often run by local people for local people – so it actually affects the whole community." Hitch is hopeful that Raid-control will be taken nationwide.

Using a problem-solving approach
DCI Mark Stafford is the pro-active team manager at Croydon Police, and is directly responsible for the work of the Crime Prevention Officers working on the Raid-control project. "One of our key priorities in the Metropolitan Police, and indeed within the Borough of Croydon, is the reduction of robbery offences using a combination of pro-active policing and a problem-solving approach," commented Stafford.

"The intention is to deliver long-term sustained reduction and prevention. Target-hardening, coupled with reduced pay-off and the increased chance of detection, assists this strategy no end."