The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on all aspects of life, including the prevalence of crime. This article summarises the recent crime report, while offering security advice to help you protect your premises.
Official UK Crime Statistics
On the 22nd of July, the Government released official annual statistics detailing crime outcomes in England and Wales from March 2020 to March 2021. The comprehensive report detailed an expected decrease in crime as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. With lockdowns and limited movement, the opportunity for some crimes was greatly reduced. However, there were two particular areas which increased compared to the previous 12 months: fraud and computer misuse, and drug related offences. Overall, there was a 13% decrease in police recorded crime, excluding fraud.
Acquisitive crimes such as burglary, theft, vehicle offences, and shoplifting all reduced compared to the previous year. Notably, burglary was down 36% and shoplifting was down 52% as explained by store closures. As introduced before, fraud and computer misuse were up with a staggering 4.6 million fraud offences recorded in the 12-month period: a 24% increase on the previous year. Meanwhile, drug offences rose 13% compared to the previous year despite the pandemic and consequential worldwide shutdown.
Protecting Your Premises in 2021 and Beyond
As a security company, it is our role to help you protect your premises from damage, thereby protecting the people and assets inside. We install, maintain, and repair security systems at schools, hospitals, businesses, government sites, and other commercial properties. Below, we’ve listed three ways to enhance the security on your property.
CCTV – Deter, Monitor, and Record
The Annual Statistics discussed the importance of CCTV in apprehending offenders. Notably, they highlighted that CCTV increases the chance of apprehending offenders and providing evidence at trial. Ultimately, if you have a CCTV system installed, you can monitor all activity, thereby recording events to use for evidence. Of course, they couldn’t measure the number of crimes that were deterred by the presence of CCTV, but this is another benefit of having a system.
Access Control – Protect, Restrict, and Secure
Access control systems are another effective way to protect your premises. This efficient technology ensures that only authorised personnel enter certain rooms and sections of your building. It can thereby protect your assets, restrict unauthorised people from entering, and secure your premises with complete control.
Barriers and Gates – Limit, Prevent, and Control
Security barriers and gates are one of the simplest ways to protect your premises. Having a defined and secure perimeter limits unwanted or unauthorised people or vehicles from entering the site, thereby preventing unapproved on-site activities.
A Note on Securing Your Home
Commercial properties require more extensive security measures than a home. For example, you wouldn’t need access control to limit who enters your kitchen or bedroom! But other measures like alarms, CCTV, and perimeter barriers can be extremely effective for home security. Here are three tips for enhancing the security at your home:
- Install a CCTV system.
- Ensure all door locks are secure and lock your door when leaving home.
- Regularly maintain all security measures, including alarms.
Have you recently reviewed your security measures?
While crime statistics have decreased over the past year, this shouldn’t be a reason to delay security installation or repairs. With everything opening back up, now is the time to enhance security at your commercial property.
Contact the ai security Team
If you have any questions about security, contact the experienced ai security team today. We can answer all of your questions about security system installation, maintenance and repairs.
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