Rock House, Cambridge Road, Hastings TN34 1DT 01424 230149. office@bcrphastings.com

Rother Shopwatch and Barwatch

Rother Shopwatch and Barwatch have been created to support businesses in the towns of Bexhill, Battle, and Rye and villages such as Bodiam, Robertsbridge, Burwash and Northiam.

In Bexhill we are working in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce to deliver the scheme to their members.

The schemes allow businesses to share information and intelligence about known offenders (ie shoplifters or people known to be violent or disruptive in local pubs and bars) between each other and with the police.

A common civil exclusion agreement means it is possible to ban repeat offenders from all member premises, and this is administered centrally, with the scheme co-ordinator updating the shared database and issuing warning or banning letters to known individuals.

Where an offender’s image is captured but no name is avaliable this image can be shared amongst other members for a possible positive identification.

The schemes are operated by Hastings Area Business Crime Reduction Partnership CIC – a fully accredited community interest company that adheres to national standards, operates a data sharing agreement with Hastings and Rother Police, and also works in partnership with other BCRPs in Eastbourne, Brighton, Crawley, Chichester, Bognor and Worthing.

Membership is open to any shop or pub/bar in Rother and for the remainder of 2020/21 is free to encourage business owners to sign up and see the benefits.

In 2021/22 fees will be set as low as possible to cover administrative costs and are likely to be around £10 per month.

To enquire about joining simply email your details (name, business name, address, and phone number) to office@bcrphastings.com and we will get in touch.

Our vision

We believe that working together is the best way to deter local repeat offenders from the area.

Once they know we are watching them and taking action, they will stay away.

We aim to give businesses the tools, the support, and the training they need to deter known offenders from in and around their premises.

We provide a collective voice when talking to the Police and the Council to secure an appropriate response to crime and anti-social behaviour affecting our members’ businesses.

Our over-arching objective is to reduce levels of crime in the area to improve the ability of members to trade safely and profitably.

Member benefits

  1. Regular intelligence meetings are held to discuss current cases and share information on offenders.
  2. Reductions in losses of stock and increased numbers of customers due to the reduced fear of crime in the area.
  3. A safer environment in the night-time economy with individuals known to cause problems excluded or on watch lists.
  4. A powerful online database (accessible via both a website and a smartphone app) stores data on hundreds of known offenders. It gives easy access to images and details of who is excluded or has a Criminal Behaviour Order and keeps members up-to-date with all the latest news about anti-crime initiatives.
  5. Members have access to advice and guidance on ways to design out crime and make best use of technology such as CCTV.
  6. A data-sharing agreement with Sussex Police that allows images of offenders to be matched with names and addresses.
  7. A weekly e-newsletter with details of the latest offenders added to the database.
  8. Radio handsets can be supplied to allow businesses to talk quickly to their neighbours (additional fees may apply).

JOIN TODAY!

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