Town poised to receive status of crime-fighter

The civil servant will spend the morning speaking to those involved with the application to become an Action Against Business Crime town.

Meetings will also be held with the key organisations '“ councils and firms '“ involved in the bid.

This session should end in approval of all the paperwork and procedures put in place to earn Bognor the right to join 210 other business centres as an AABC place.

This will also enable Bognor to receive a Safer Town Award at an official launch of its business crime status this autumn.

The business crime scheme will replace the existing networks for the 74-strong Shopwatch, Pubwatch of 49 members and Taxiwatch with its nine members from the main taxi firms in the town.

Those members that continue with the new set-up will rent a new radio with an unique ID code, an emergency button to summon help and the technology to send text messages. The radios will be capable of receiving encrypted information sent by the police to enable them to stay on top of tackling criminals and which cannot be eavesdropped by the public.

An integral aspect of the initiative will be a new radio base station that will come into effect on October 1.

A business crime reduction manager is being appointed to lead the new initiative. A chairman, vice chairman and a committee will be put in place as well.

Publician Jim Shepherd, who runs the existing schemes linked to Shopwatch, said he was hopeful all the preliminary work needed for the new business crime fighting accolade had been completed.

It would represent a major set up from the current anti-crime work around the town centre.

'Each premises which joins the scheme will have their crime-fighting work vetted by the police and then given a plaque saying they are a safe place for drinking or eating or whatever business they are involved in.

'There will be gold, silver and bronze awards so people can see how safe places are,' he explained.

'Chichester has already become an action against business crime town and so has Brighton. Worthing is on the way. So, when we achieve the status as well, it will mean most of this part of the south coast has the same standards.'