Partnerships with purpose Safer Business Action Day in Fulham

Friday 18th October saw the tackling of business crime in the Discover Fulham area escalate to a new level. Working in partnership with Safer Business Network and the Metropolitan Police, our Safer Business Action Day (SABA) showed the true value of partnership working and what can be done when all objectives are aligned.

The aims of the day of action were to be a visible presence throughout the BID area, focusing on finding prolific offenders, increasing reporting of crime, increasing trust and understanding with the police, reducing anti-social behaviour, promoting our work to tackle Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) and to raise awareness to support activities in crime prevention.

There was a combined, multi-faceted approach which included a morning briefing with major businesses throughout the area –detailing the days activities and informing of extra support that was included on the day. Patrols and business visits which included Safer Business Network, Discover Fulham Street Wardens, Metropolitan Police (two Sergeants, nine Police Officers, three Police Community Safety Officers), Hammersmith & Fulham Council Law Enforcement Team and CCTV Team, equated to over 30 hours of joint patrols, with over 100 businesses visited. The Police hosted two ‘Coffee with a Copper’ events in areas that are targeted for shoplifting, giving both residents and businesses the opportunity to speak to their local officers and for the officers to build relationships within the community. There was also a stand housed in Fulham Broadway Retail Centre, the highest footfall space within the area, that provided information on a range of crime prevention activities.

The Safer Business Day of Action resulted in one prolific offender being arrested on the day, charged and remanded on three counts of theft. One suspect was arrested for theft, criminal damage and common assault. Four Community Protection Warnings were issued as a request to cease the behaviour that is detrimental to the local community. There were an additional five stop and searches carried out.

The day was deemed a great success by all involved, and all parties want to continue the partnership working by making the Safer Business Action Days a regular activity, focusing on different areas of crime and antisocial behaviour that are being committed in Fulham.

“We thought it was a great initiative - we had much lower incidence of crime on the day, so word definitely got out. Great to see you and the team visiting businesses too. We would definitely support this sort of event in future.”

Branch Manager, National Supermarket

“The recent Action Day in Fulham was like a ‘cherry on the top’ of an already great collaboration. It was amazing to see so many police officers in the area connecting with businesses and making arrests. We’ve heard a lot of positive feedback from the customers as well.”

Branch Manager, National Health and Wellbeing Store