£10k police funding will help make Lancaster a safer place

The funds were awarded by the Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner as one of the first grants awarded from his new Safer Lancashire Neighbourhoods Fund.

The project received the maximum £10,000 available and was one of only eight projects across the county to receive funding.

Lancaster BID’s funding will be used to extend the working hours of the BID warden, Max Dior, by an extra 15 hours per week spread across five evenings. A varied shift pattern will ensure regular visible

patrols on all days of the week.

A safe and secure city centre is one of the five priorities of Lancaster BID (Business Improvement District).

The BID warden post began in 2020 and has proven a success in tackling shoplifting and improving communication between businesses in the city centre. Max works closely with local businesses and partners

including the Neighbourhood Policing Team to make a real positive difference.

Max is also a familiar face to the public and has often come to assistance of people who have had an accident or who need help finding somewhere in the city centre.

Lancaster BID also recently introduced the Disc App to the city centre, which allows businesses to share details and images of shoplifters and other offenders in a GDPR compliant manner.

This helps to highlight the most prolific offenders who can then be issued with banning orders from city centre businesses.

Tony Johnson, Lancaster BID manager, said: “This funding is a recognition of the success of our Safe and Secure agenda supporting city centre businesses to tackle antisocial behaviour.

"It will ensure the BID warden is available to work even more closely with Lancaster Police to deter antisocial behaviour and catch more of the frequent offenders to make the city centre a safer and more pleasant place for everyone to visit and do business.”

Any city centre businesses that wish to hear more about how they can benefit from Lancaster BID’s Safe and Secure work is encouraged to get in touch at [email protected]

Lindsay Brown, partnership officer at Lancashire Police, added: “Lancaster and Morecambe Neighbourhood Policing Team are delighted that Lancaster BID has been successful in securing support from the PCC’s Safer Lancashire Neighbourhoods Fund.

"The funding will build on the existing successful partnership between the local business, partner agencies and the police, Safe and Secure Lancaster.

"It will enable existing measures to combat anti-social behaviour to extend from the daytime into the early evening and night-time economy. We are determined to ensure that Lancaster is as safe and welcoming place as it can be for people to live, work and visit.”