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THE CO-OP: BODY-WORN CAMERAS FOR RETAIL STAFF

PROTECTING STAFF & THE PUBLIC WITH WEARABLE CAMERAS

The Co-op is one of the world’s largest consumer co-operatives, owned by millions of members, and is a leading convenience retailer with more than 2,600 local, convenience and medium-sized stores.

As well as having clear financial and operational objectives and employing nearly 70,000 people, the Co-op is a recognised leader thanks to its social goals and community-led programmes.

Customer Profile

CLIENT: The Co-Op

SECTOR: Retail

body worn cameras

Did you know?

Every day 250 shop workers are the victim of a violent incident^

64% of violent incidents involved the use of knives - increasingly violent incidents involve weapons†

^ ‘Freedom From Fear’ Survey, 2017, Usdaw        † The Crime Report (2018), Association of Convenience Stores (ACS)

The Challenge

With crime increasing by more than 140% in its retail stores this year, and reports of 1,350 cases of violence against staff in the first six months of 2020, the Co-op is committed to keeping its colleagues and the public safe. Having launched its Safer Colleagues, Safer Communities initiative in 2018, the Co-op has shown that it is dedicated to tackling crime and violence, and protecting its colleagues.

The Safer Colleagues, Safer Communities campaign has seen the Co-op invest £70m in security, crime prevention and colleague safety measures in a three year period, a level of funding that they have committed to maintain in coming years. While traditional CCTV has successfully provided in-store surveillance, Co-op recognised the technology’s limitations in providing proactive support to its colleagues, and sought to invest in new technology that was connected, innovative and available for staff.

The Solution

The Motorola Solutions VT100 Body-Worn Camera for retail environments is the technology of choice for the Co-op. It is an integrated, connected solution that enables immediate response to acts of violence and aggression against colleagues; it is simple to use, requires minimal training, and deters antisocial behaviour from the outset.

The VT100 offers the features required to allow colleagues to feel safer and more confident in their roles.

This lightweight recording device is worn on the uniform of store colleagues, and is activated with the simple push of a button. Should a Co-op colleague feel threatened, simply activating the VT100 instantly enables a live stream of the incident to be shared with Co-op’s Security Operations Centre (SOC) managed by Mitie, their security services provider.

At this time, trained personnel can assess the situation in real time, despatching police support where necessary.

All footage captured on the VT100 is stored securely to the device, where it is later offloaded to VideoManager, Motorola Solutions software for managing body-worn camera footage and users.

The Deployment

Initially, the Co-op trialled VT100 body-worn cameras in 50 stores which were identified to be the most badly impacted by crime. Subsequently, Motorola Solutions was awarded a contract to supply an additional 200 stores with this integrated video solution.

Customer Review

I can speak from personal experience that just having a body cam there makes me feel so much safer. Just knowing I have it to hand it gives me the confidence that whatever happens is recorded for evidence. People notice it too, it stops stuff from even happening in the first place.

5

Colston Davidge, Store Manager, Westbury - Bristol

Nothing is more important than protecting our colleagues now and in the future.

5

Jo Whitfield, Retail Chief Executive

Equipment Supplied

 

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