The new approach considers all the safeguards needed to be compliant with the Data Protection Act 2018 and GDPR in a format that provides a clear audit trail of what has been shared, and why.      

Data sharing between the police and retailers is a critical tool in crime prevention and important for several key reasons:

1. Crime prevention and early intervention: Sharing information about suspicious activities, theft patterns, or known offenders helps both police and retailers intervene earlier, preventing crimes like shop theft, organised retail crime, violence against shop workers before they escalate.

2. Faster Investigations: When retailers quickly provide police with CCTV footage, images and crime reports, it accelerates investigations. This speed can be critical for catching suspects, recovering stolen goods, and gathering evidence.

3. Targeting Organised Crime: Organised retail crime groups often hit multiple locations. Sharing data allows police to spot patterns across different retailers and locations, connecting incidents that might otherwise seem isolated, leading to dismantling larger criminal networks.

4. Resource Efficiency: Both retailers and police have limited resources. Sharing information means efforts can be better focused on the most significant threats such as violent and prolific offenders.  

5. Enhanced Public Safety: Reducing crime in retail spaces such as our high streets and shopping centres, directly contributes to safer communities.  Shoppers and employees feel safer when there’s a coordinated approach to deterring criminal activity.

6. Building Trust and Collaboration: A strong relationship between retailers and law enforcement fosters mutual trust. It encourages more proactive engagement from businesses and a more community-focused approach from police.

The NBCC has developed a range of forms to facilitate the data sharing process.

Please note: Individual disclosure decisions on what to share, or not, will always be made by each force as controllers of their own data.

Form A - Retail to police request form

This form is to be used to request information from the police and is made on the basis that there is a legitimate interest, the police in turn can share the information if the request meets a Policing Purpose.

It is important that all the boxes are completed so that the police can ensure that it meets a Policing Purpose which provides the justification to share the information requested.       

Form B - Proactive police disclosure to retail form

This form is to be used by the police when they want to share information with an external body such as retailer, BCRP or BID.  The form provides an auditable record of what has been shared, with whom and why.   

Police Guidance for Information Sharing to Tackle Retail Crime

This document is aimed at the police and sets out what, when and why information can be shared externally.  In all cases there needs to be a relevant, police recorded incident before information sharing can be considered.  Particular attention should be paid to the conditions for sharing, which sets out how the information shared should be handled by the receiving party. 

Retailer Data Sharing Process

In support of the police guidance document, the flow chart provides a visual representation of the information sharing process, explaining each element and the considerations of the data sharing process. 

NPCC Data Protection Considerations

This document is intended to support the NBCC’s Guidance for Information Sharing to Tackle Retail Crime, by providing more detail around the data protection considerations for force information management teams. It has been developed collaboratively by the NPCC Retail Crime and NPCC Data Sharing Portfolios, in line with ICO advice and guidance.