New police officer employed to tackle shoplifting and other crimes in Peterborough city centre

A new police officer will start work this month with the aim of reducing shoplifting and other crimes in Peterborough city centre – to make it a more pleasant place to shop and work.

The officer has been appointed as part of a joint project between Cambridgeshire Police and the Peterborough Business Improvement District (BID).

Earlier this year, the Peterborough Telegraph revealed that shoplifting had increased by 54 per cent in the past year, and a special summit was held in the Town Hall last month to tackle the subject.

The new officer’s patch will be limited to the city centre – but will work with other officers and agencies to get results.

BID manager Pep Cipriano said: “The new officer is here to support businesses around shoplifting and other offences in the city centre.

"He will increase visibility and compliance. His job will be to get in and speak to businesses, and find out what the issues are that are affecting them on a day to day basis. He is there to be a friend of businesses.

"It is something that should increase confidence in the city centre. It will provide a deterrent to stop some of the major problems.

"It will also be a benefit to the night time economy – he will have a flexible shift pattern – it won’t be a 9-5 job.

Pep said other BIDs across the country had already taken similar steps, and seen positive changes as a result.

He said: “This is a really big step for us. It is not unusual for BIDs to do something like this. We know the issues we have in the city centre – graffiti, anti-social behaviour, shoplifting – so this will be a big step to improve safety.

"We know all the issues will are never going to go away – we are a city – but this multi-agency approach with police, enforcement officers, parking officers, street chaplains – it is enough to make a meaningful difference.

“I stood up to 80 businesses at the summit, and explained what we did, and the reaction was very positive.”

Cambridgeshire Police confirmed a dedicated PC had been hired for the BID area, but said no further comment was available at the moment.