Central England Co-op rolls out new security measures to combat crime and keep people safe
Posted by rob smyth | Published: 01/11/2018
Central England Co-op can today reveal the launch of a range of new security measures in its Food Stores in an effort to keep colleagues, customers and the community safe from crime.
The retailer has completed a review into how it keep stores secure and, as a result, has improved current measures or put in place new ones to ensure criminals know that targeting convenience supermarkets is not ‘worth the risk’.
Among the changes and improvements now in place are specialist tracking devices installed on a range of items from cigarettes to ATMs to allow the police to be led directly to criminals, a centrally monitored CCTV system which allows colleagues to call for assistance at the touch of a button, a change in closing times and a review of the way security guards are used.
The retailer’s Loss Prevention team has also been working closely with ATM provider Cardtronics to implement additional security measures to prevent the internal safe from opening if gas or explosives are used – meaning would-be thieves walk away empty-handed.
Craig Goldie, Loss Prevention Advisor at Central England Co-op, said: “We are aware that incidents such as robberies and ATM thefts are frightening for store colleagues, who are our first priority.
“We are doing everything we can to prevent incidents like this from happening, but if something does happen we offer them support and counselling both from within our business and specialists.
“Now we have put in place new and improved tools to work with the police and partners to help bring the perpetrators to justice.
“We want our message to be clear – it is not worth the risk to target Central England Co-operative Food Stores and we are doing everything in our power to combat crime in our communities and keep people safe when they shop.”
The central monitoring system allows colleagues to press a button to alert a special control room who will then be able to watch what is happening on CCTV and call for immediate assistance from the emergency services if required.
External motion detectors have also been installed outside of Food Stores and will be activated outside of trading hours. When activated they will switch on CCTV cameras that will allow specially trained camera operatives to monitor the situation and act if it escalates.
Notes to editors
About Central England Co-operative
Central England Co-operative is one of the largest independent retail co-operative societies in the UK.
It is a modern, forward-looking organisation employing over 8,000 staff, with the Society’s principal areas of activity being food, funeral services, travel shops, and property investment.
Central England Co-operative has over 400 trading outlets across 16 counties including; West Midlands, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Suffolk, Norfolk, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. The Society has an ambitious food store development programme for 2018.
Central England Co-operative is proud of its reputation for ethical business practices and corporate responsibility. It is a member of Business in the Community, the membership organisation that stands for responsible business, and has also won many business awards for excellence. The Society supports a number of charities including Dementia UK and invests a percentage of its trading profit into local communities.
Becoming a member of Central England Co-operative offers a whole host of benefits ranging from collecting points every time you spend in store to earn a share of the profits, access to members activities and community initiatives including the Community Dividend Fund, which hands out grants of up to £5,000 to charities and good causes across the Society’s trading estate.
Find out how to become a Central England Co-operative member by calling 0800 0501 601, emailing members@centralengland.coop or visiting https://www.members.coop
For more information visit www.centralengland.coop, follow Central England Co-operative on Twitter: @mycoopfood, and on Facebook: facebook.com/centralenglandcooperative
Rob Smyth at Central England Co-operative on 01543 414140
Email –publicrelations@centralengland.coop