Wandsworth Community Safety Partnership relaunches Business against Crime scheme   

Businesses in Wandsworth can sign up to the Wandsworth Business Against Crime Scheme (WBAC) and become part of a network sharing information on crime and community safety with each other, the police and the council.  

282 new businesses have already been signed up in Battersea and the target is to sign up a thousand businesses by the end of the year.   

Ally Wolf is general manager of The Grand in Clapham Junction. He said “I am proud The Clapham Grand is supporting the Business Against Crime Scheme. As a large hospitality operator in the borough we are in a key position to assist everyone in the local area, and being given this platform to enable this is something we make full use of."  

The scheme is free to join and businesses get access to a dedicated website that can be accessed via a desktop or mobile phone app. This means they can:  

• Share photographs of offenders/shoplifters with each other and the police.  
• Work together to ban persistent offenders from multiple premises at the same time, where contact details are available the offender will be sent a letter telling them about the ban.  
• Receive community safety updates, crime prevention advise, weekly e-newsletters featuring updates on active offenders.  
• Report incidents, share intelligence, upload photos and details of individuals caught or suspected of criminal activity or disorderly behaviour through a password protected database.  
• Access an ‘alert system’ where important or time sensitive information is sent directly to their email inbox.  

The Wandsworth Community Safety Partnership brings together the council, police and other local authorities and organisations to work together to prevent and reduce crime.   

Graeme Henderson, Wandsworth Council Cabinet Member for community safety said: “We’re really pleased to work as part of the Community Safety Partnership to re-launch Wandsworth Business Against Crime. We want to help local businesses tackle crime and support them when they experience crime and anti-social behaviour.”

Mike Jackson, chief executive of Wandsworth Council and chair of the Wandsworth Community Safety Partnership, said: “The Partnership is delighted that many businesses have already signed up – it’s great to see such interest and support from our business community.  The more members this scheme has, the greater the intelligence and information captured, the better it works.”  

For more information on the Wandsworth Business Against Crime scheme, including information on how to become a member, email communitysafety@richmondandwandsworth.gov.uk