A New National Resource: The 25 Techniques of Retail Crime Prevention
A collaborative initiative launched at the Thames Valley Police Retail Crime Conference has resulted in the creation of a practical new resource to support the prevention and reduction of retail crime.
Building on the established 25 Techniques of Situational Crime Prevention, delegates at the conference worked together to develop a retail-specific version tailored to the challenges faced by retailers, police and partners across the UK. The outcome is the 25 Techniques of Retail Crime Prevention, a comprehensive framework designed to help organisations systematically identify and implement effective crime prevention measures.
During the conference, attendees took part in a facilitated workshop session. Each table was assigned one of the 25 situational crime prevention techniques and asked to populate a blank grid with practical retail-focused interventions. Responses were submitted digitally via Microsoft Forms and compiled through an automated process into a single, cohesive document.
The session brought together a wide range of expertise, with representatives from police forces, police staff roles, partner agencies and third-sector organisations all contributing. This multi-agency approach ensured the final resource reflects real-world experience and is grounded in operational reality.
The completed framework groups interventions under five key crime prevention principles:
- Increase the effort by making harder for offenders to offend
- Increase the risks to offenders of them getting caught
- Reduce the rewards of crime
- Reduce provocations that can lead to offending
- Remove excuses for criminal behaviour
Across the 25 techniques, the document highlights practical measures such as target hardening, improving surveillance, reducing anonymity, strengthening guardianship, managing offender behaviour and supporting compliance. Many of the examples are low-cost, scalable and suitable for use by retailers of all sizes, working either independently or in partnership with local policing teams.
Professor Gloria Laycock, who attended the event, praised the initiative saying: “There are lots of ways to prevent crime, including retail crime, and it is worth thinking through these possible ways systematically, that way you don’t miss any opportunities. This session at the Thames Valley Police Retail Crime Conference led to a plethora of options for hard pressed retailers resulting in the ‘25 steps’ table specifically for retail crime prevention. It is a great resource, and copies are now with academics in Australia and the USA.”
The 25 Techniques of Retail Crime Prevention is intended to be a living, shareable resource. It can be used to support local problem-solving, inform crime prevention strategies, shape partnership discussions and provide a common language for tackling retail crime.
The NBCC is delighted to be able to support the initiative by hosting the framework on the website and urge partners to be share it more widely. By working together and applying evidence-based prevention principles, police, retailers and partners can better protect businesses, staff and communities from retail crime.
Click below to download a copy:
