High Wycombe shops call for more CCTV and police surveillance

Thames Valley Police began rolling out its new CCTV Partnership Scheme in Milton Keynes and Slough earlier this year, with ownership of CCTV cameras in the two regions transferring from their respective councils to the police force, a move that will see the upgrade and multiplication of public space cameras and an investment in on-the-ground staffing.

An equivalent scheme for High Wycombe has yet to be announced, however, despite several retailers in the town emphasising the pressing need for a greater crackdown on crime in the town.

Asghar Nejad, 68, who owns Neda Mini Market on the High Street, became disillusioned with the local force after their ongoing failure to resolve a large-scale robbery of his store in July 2023, where he lost around £13,000 worth of goods and had to shell out hundreds for a new back door, CCTV and alarm system.

"In my mind, the law gives thieves more rights than shop owners. If someone comes to my store and steals something, legally I can't touch them. That's why people aren't scared to come in and take what they want.

"I have to pay for my own security, but even when I send the police images of the people to steal things, they just say 'We'll keep you updated' and don't do anything. What I've learned is that you have to secure yourself as much as possible, and not rely on the police or the law. We have to do everything ourselves - it's the only way forward."

The story is the same at a handful of other shops in High Wycombe - Rawsht Abdullha, 26, a cashier at the Grosik Polish supermarket on Castle Street, said the store's 16 internal CCTV cameras are enough to catch shoplifters in the act, but don't often result in prosecutions.

Brabh Singh, 23, who works at the Premier convenience store on Booker Lane, also said the business is entirely reliant on in-store cameras to monitor crime - including one recently installed inside a card machine. 

Public space CCTV in High Wycombe is currently run by Buckinghamshire Council, while cameras inside the Eden Shopping Centre are delegated to the complex. Similarly to shops in the larger town, however, businesses in the centre have been forced to become increasingly self-reliant and are unambiguous in their calls for "more proactivity" from officers on the ground.

James Mckenzie, 24, store manager of the sportswear retailer Sports Crest, said the cost of the shop's CCTV system has been difficult to square with financial losses from continuous shoplifting incidents.

He said: "We've had ski jackets that are about £800 stolen, with people just walking in, taking them and walking out. Just the other week, two pairs of shoes were taken while my colleague was serving a customer.

"We've stopped reporting it to the police, to be honest. It feels like there's no point because they don't do anything - we submit crime reports, and they just don't get back to us."

Martyna Dzik, 22, deputy manager at Collectables R Us, had similar criticism, adding: "We've heard from Eden a few times that they'll bring in more security on the ground, but we haven't heard anything about it being put into effect.

"It's annoying because we can make the reports, but there's not much we can do to speed the process along."

Matthew Barber, Police and Crime Commissioner for the Thames Valley said: "I am committed to continued investment in the Thames Valley CCTV Partnership to improve technology and coverage across the area.

"Buckinghamshire Council currently have their own plans for CCTV coverage, but I will continue to work closely with them in the interests of driving down crime."

He added that "tackling shoplifting and assaults on shop workers" is an important role carried out by neighbourhood policing teams, with the force on track to double the number of neighbourhood officers across the county by the end of the year. 

"We will shortly be rolling out a new reporting app to make it easier for stores to report crime - as we know that these offences are often underreported. I have worked closely with the High Wycombe Business Improvement District to help shape this strategy."

Buckinghamshire Council has been contacted for comment.