A crack down on anti social behaviour and shop lifting in the city centre this Christmas has been launched in Newport.

Newport Business Against Crime is partnering with Newport Now in a renewed bid to stamp out shop lifting and anti-social behaviour to support businesses and create a safe and welcoming environment the city centre.

Radios are being issued to the police, Newport Council CCTV, Newport Now ambassadors, Friars Walk security, Kingsway security, street pastors, the university, retailers in the city centre, licensed premises and door staff.

The two-way communications devices, which have been sponsored and supplied by the business community via Newport Now, are at the heart of the early warning city centre security system.

Newport business owner Alan Edwards, chairman of Newport Now Business Improvement District, said: “These radios have been introduced as a direct response to the precise requirements identified by the Newport Now Safe and Secure Group.

“Ultimately, we as businesses want Newport city centre to be as safe and welcoming for our visitors and our staff and we want to deter the small number of people that can spoil it for everyone. So we are all working positively together to improve our centre.

“We all know that the police cannot be everywhere and we want to help them in their efforts to make a safer city centre.

“The new radios, sponsored and supplied by Newport Now, have been given to the police, street pastors and the new ambassador scheme and will link through to shops and retailers, Newport City Council CCTV, Kingsway Centre, Friars Walk, and Newport Market for the benefit of all city centre businesses, customers and visitors.”

The new scheme will also enable photographs and information on local and travelling shoplifters to be made available to all city centre businesses and retailers.

The initiative will react to requests by city centre stores for known shoplifters to be refused entry to all shops in the city centre. Information will be circulated to pubs and clubs to prevent recognized trouble makers from entering their premises.

Newport Business Against Crime co-ordinator Bob Bevan said: “The radios will provide a useful link between retailers and licensed premises and agencies in the city centre to warn of the conduct of known shoplifters, fraudsters, purse thieves and disorderly persons in order they may be deterred from committing theft, anti social behaviour, threats or assaults.

“The radios will also be used by retailers and door staff to assist the emergency services in the event of incidents of any type in and around their premises.

“They will be used by the Newport Now Ambassador Service to stay in touch with council CCTV and Newport Now members regarding any city centre events or day to day problems they come across. They’ll be used by door staff to prevent underage persons, as well as disorderly, drunk and banned persons from entering licensed premises.

“Street pastors will use them in the night time to keep in touch with the police, CCTV and door staff.

“The university will be able to monitor and assist if young students are in need of assistance or undesirable persons are seen in and around the city centre campus. The police will monitor the radio and use it to assist in dealing with their work or incidents in the city centre.”

Figures show city centre users and businesses actively involved in such schemes throughout the country have seen reductions in stock loss through shoplifting and fraud, less intimidation and threats to staff. The system also leads to the gathering of information for the use of council and police anti social behaviour officers in order they may obtain court orders and injunctions.

The radios are available for use 24 hours by retailers and licensed premises assisted by Newport City Council CCTV staff who will monitor incidents and problems in the city centre and pass information to shops, door staff as well as providing CCTV evidence to the police.

Bob said: “The scheme sets out to deter offenders by passing information around the city centre to all shops and premises and where necessary provide evidence and information to the police and other agencies to arrest and prosecute offenders.

“By removing these persons and stopping their activities, businesses, staff, visitors and customers in the city centre feel more secure providing a safer and enjoyable shopping and visitor experience.”

“The introduction of the radios is a pre cursor to ongoing work with shops and customers by the Police to deter shoplifters as the Christmas shopping rush approaches. Shoplifters preparing to do their Christmas stealing been warned all businesses in the city centre are now pulling together backed up by this new radio security scheme.”