Retail crime and in particular theft and shoplifting is a serious concern across our communities — not only for the businesses directly affected, but for residents, visitors, and anyone who wants to see vibrant, thriving high streets.   

It’s not just about financial loss. Crime and antisocial behaviour in our town centres damage confidence, discourage footfall, and impact people’s sense of safety.  

That’s why I’m proud to announce the launch of a year-long pilot in Torbay, funded by my office, to provide businesses with free access to the UK Partners Against Crime (UKPAC) Business Crime Reduction Solution.   

This innovative initiative gives local traders a powerful, user-friendly platform to report shoplifting, antisocial behaviour and other criminal activity quickly and effectively.  

The UKPAC system — accessible via a secure online portal or smartphone app — enables businesses to submit incident reports, share intelligence, and work collectively to tackle persistent and repeat offenders. This shared approach allows police to build stronger, more detailed evidence files and to target their resources where they will have the greatest impact and reduces the time police officers have to spend building legal case files for court. 

This initiative forms part of my wider Street Focus: Torquay programme, a multi-agency effort involving Devon & Cornwall Police, Torbay Council, SWISCo and others, focused on addressing the deep-rooted issues affecting Castle Circus and the town centre more broadly.  

Retail crime is not an isolated issue. It affects entire communities. When a business experiences repeated shoplifting or abuse of staff, it takes a toll — not just on profitability, but on morale, safety, and the willingness of businesses to invest in our towns. That’s why I see supporting our business community as a core part of my mission to keep Devon and Cornwall safe.  

With UKPAC, we are empowering traders to be part of the solution. Rather than asking small business owners to fill out time-consuming reports or chase follow-ups, this system simplifies the process. In just a few clicks, incidents can be logged, images and footage uploaded, and relevant information shared across the network.  

More importantly, this information doesn’t just sit in a file — it becomes actionable intelligence. Patterns emerge. Repeat offenders can be identified more quickly. And crucially, it enables high-quality case files to be built that improve the likelihood of prosecution and conviction.  

Businesses that sign up to UKPAC also benefit from access to discounted crime prevention tools and services — providing further support to protect their staff and premises. It’s a joined-up, practical approach to crime reduction that fits hand in glove with our broader partnership work in Torbay.  

As Gareth Lewis, chairman of UKPAC, rightly said, the impact of business crime goes well beyond financial loss. It undermines confidence and can erode the very fabric of a community. By improving how we report, track, and respond to these crimes, we are sending a clear message: crime against businesses in Torbay will not be tolerated.  

Inspector Rob Harvey and his neighbourhood policing team are already seeing the benefits of working with partners to tackle the issues affecting the high street. By incorporating data from UKPAC into their patrol planning and enforcement activity, they can target their efforts more effectively and respond faster to emerging problems.  

It’s also worth remembering there are other similar schemes available for traders in other areas. For example, Exeter Business Against Crime has a successful crime reporting platform that has driven great results in the fight against shoplifting in the city centre. For more information visit https://ebac.org.uk/ 

This is just the beginning. My vision is that this pilot in Torbay will serve as a blueprint for other areas across Devon and Cornwall. We want to see our town centres bustling, welcoming and safe — places where businesses can thrive and where residents and visitors feel proud to spend their time.  

If you are a business owner in Torbay and have been affected by crime or antisocial behaviour, I urge you to sign up. It takes just a few minutes to get started, but the impact could be long-lasting. Together, we can build a stronger, safer, and more resilient community.  

For more information about the Street Focus: Torquay project, visit www.street-focus.co.uk/torquay  

For more information about UKPAC and to sign up visit https://uk-pac.com/