As part of an extensive 8-week operation undertaken in November and December 2023, Croydon Business Improvement District (BID) cemented a collaborative partnership with the Metropolitan Police Service of Croydon (MPS) to augment on-street patrol teams with additional police personnel.
The BID match-funded police team consisted of nine officers, comprising one sergeant and eight police constables. Collectively, they contributed an additional 576 patrol hours, covering prime locations in the heart of Croydon, specifically Surrey Street, North End, and West Croydon.
With an amplified police presence in the town centre, the additional units not only supported the existing team of patrol officers on the ground, but also provided residents and visitors with a heightened sense of safety and security.
As a direct result of this operation, the team reported 25 arrests, conducted 67 stop and searches, made 5 vehicle stops, executed 2 seizures, identified 11 breaches of PSPO, and issued 7 CPN/CPNW’s.
In conjunction with these patrols, Croydon MPS oversaw the delivery of other successful operations, including a facial recognition exercise, leading to more than 10 arrests, and the deployment of over 150 officers across a two-day span in North End and West Croydon.
Comparatively, these efforts contributed to a significant 12% reduction in total notifiable offences in comparison to December of the previous year.
Looking ahead, Croydon BID has pledged to keep the momentum by extending the funding for additional police patrols in the town centre until the end of March 2024.
The initiative is already delivering positive results, with a total of 36 business engagement visits and several weapon recoveries accounting for the latest patrol, aided in part by the Croydon BID Street Rangers.
Croydon BID remains dedicated to working with its partners to reduce the impact of business crime across our town centre.
This commitment is reflected in initiatives like the Croydon BID Street Rangers team, which delivers nearly 8,000 additional hours per year in improved visibility, engagement, and support, as well as the intelligence network provided via the Croydon BID Radio Link.
For full details of how Croydon BID works to reduce the impact of business crime within Croydon town centre, please visit: croydonbid.com/business/resolve
