Cleveland Police 'punching above their weight' to tackle shoplifting

Last month Mr Turner hosted a forum with retailers about police and safety

A police and crime commissioner (PCC) says his force is "punching above their weight" in tackling shoplifting.

The area served by Cleveland Police had England and Wales's highest rate of shoplifting in the past five years.

PCC Steve Turner told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) they were solving 22% of shoplifting crimes, compared to a figure of 19% nationally.

He said 53% of retail and business robberies were being solved, more than twice the national average (25%).

In the five-year period to 2023 (2018-19 through to 2022-23), there were 32,378 shoplifting offences recorded in the Cleveland area - proportionally the equivalent of 57 offences for every 1,000 people.

The next highest rate was Nottingham, with 48 offences per 1,000 people.

• Shoplifting and the scourge of drugs and debt

But Mr Turner stressed more than half (53%) of reported retail and business robberies were being solved, compared to a national average of 25%.

"It's never good when there is crime that's unsolved, but we are punching above our weight," he told a meeting.

Retailers are facing shoplifting, assaults and anti-social behaviour

Quizzing Mr Turner about Operation Pegasus, a national crime-fighting operation funded by major retailers, Paul McGrath - an independent member of the crime and police panel, which scrutinises the PCC - acknowledged there had been an "explosion" in shoplifting nationally.

Cleveland's PCC said the force were determined to investigate shoplifting crime locally, but there was also an onus on retailers to provide any relevant evidence which might help catch suspects.

Mr Turner said facial recognition software used in Hartlepool Spar stores had helped police

Last month, Mr Turner held a meeting with retailers in the area to listen to their concerns.

Theft and burglary were highlighted, but many also reported having issues with assaults on staff and anti-social behaviour outside their shops, according to the LDRS.

Many retailers felt current sentencing options were not acting as a sufficient deterrent for offenders.

Others suggested they would benefit from increased communication from police, citing updates on any reported incidents as one area where the relaying of information could be improved.

The PCC said he had since put their concerns to Cleveland Police.

In his report for the crime and police panel, Mr Turner said he had been "assured" by how local retail crime forums fed intelligence to an operational lead officer,

The report also stated any decision over what resources were deployed to which crimes was assessed using the Thrive process (threat, harm, risk, investigation, vulnerability and engagement).

Police say all retail crime is recorded - with investigations following "reasonable and proportionate" lines of enquiry.