CRIME against businesses is being highlighted as part of new campaigns involving Dorset Police, Weymouth BID, and local partners.

Officers from Dorset Police are supporting a national week of action to strengthen relationships between retail, security and police in an effort to tackle business crime.

Whilst the BID operations team and BID Rangers have been working closely with police and Community Safety Officers to reduce crime in the town centre.

The campaigns are being highlighted as part of the National Business Crime Centre’s Week of Action Against Business Crime.

The week, which is co-ordinated by the National Business Crime Centre (NBCC), runs until Sunday, October 23 and aims to equip business owners and security staff with the tools to tackle business crime and raise awareness of the support available to help protect them and their business.

In Weymouth, the week will see the police and BID Ranger visit businesses to provide pro-active crime prevention advice, and the promotion of schemes such as the DISC intelligence sharing system, and the Shop Watch radio, which links businesses together with the BID Ranger, Community Safety Patrol Officers and CCTV operators.

Local policing teams across Dorset will carry out pro-active events during the week of action, engaging with local businesses to improve relationships and offer signposting advice to help prevent crimes from occurring in the first place.

Superintendent Heather Dixey, from Dorset Police, said: “This national week of action provides a great opportunity for us to further strengthen our relationships between our business community and security staff by sharing information and tailoring policing solutions to tackle crime.

“With the rising cost of living, businesses are potentially more vulnerable to crime. Businesses need to be able to deter people before they commit crime, which means knowing how they are vulnerable to criminals and making it difficult for individuals and organised crime groups to commit a crime against them."

Zach Williams, Operations Assistant for We Are Weymouth (Weymouth BID) said: “We are pleased to be supporting businesses in Weymouth in tackling business crime. The impact of crime on businesses is not only financial - it can also make staff and customers feel unsafe, and it’s important that businesses and partners work together to prevent and detect crime and bring offenders to justice."