More Wealden shopkeepers are reporting crime, according to the county's Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner.
Katy Bourne OBE has this week been speaking with the BBC about the rise in shoplifting offences recorded in the south east.
Data released by the Office for National Statistics showed that there has been a rise of up to 42% of shoplifting cases in Sussex.
Whilst a higher number of cases may seem as if more crimes are being committed, the figures will also reflect increased confidence in reporting of crimes by retailers in Sussex.
"We know retailers work in extremely fast-paced environments and we know many of them don’t always have the time to report, or access to equipment allowing them to gather information or intelligence needed by police to further pursue offenders", explains Katy.
"Understanding these frustrations, we have worked closely with the Co-op, piloting our ‘One Touch Reporting’ tool in 24 of their stores in Sussex. This gives staff the ability to reduce their crime reporting time from over 30 minutes per offence, to just two minutes – and do so with a click of a button.
"This intuitive system is helping the Co-op to transform the way they report crime, making it quicker and easier for staff and providing Sussex Police with additional information about criminals. We have also introduced DISC - an information and intelligence sharing app which is now being used by many retailers across Sussex", she adds.
Sussex Police can attribute many arrests to the use of One Touch Reporting and the rise in numbers is evidence that some retailers are able to report crimes more easily.
Protecting the county
Last week Katy joined Sussex’s Tactical Firearms Unit (TFU) on one of their training days to see the skills and expertise needed in the challenging role.
Firearms officers often respond to high-risk incidents where intelligence has suggested firearms support may be required. They also provide public reassurance at events and airports and have specialist paramedic training that can save lives.
Sussex has over 150 authorised firearms officers who complete a minimum of 118 hours refresher training each year.
"It was a fascinating day to learn even more about the TFU and visit the training facilities we have in Sussex, which are regarded as some of the best in the country", says Katy.
British police firearms officers are admired the world over for their levels of training and tactical knowledge.
Although there are many thousands of police firearms operations every year officers very rarely discharge their weapons. Figures for forces across England and Wales for the past year show that there were over 18,000 firearms operations and only 10 incidents where shots were fired.
