Lincolnshire Co-op staff given bodycams to tackle rising level of abuse

Lincolnshire Co-op is providing staff in all food stores and pharmacies with body cameras to help tackle rising levels of abuse. The society, which operates in Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and surrounding counties, has seen a 245 percent increase in incidents of threats and abuse to colleagues in the past five years.

In the last year, there has been 127 incidents reported in food stores and 23 in pharmacies. All Lincolnshire Co-op's 99 food stores and 44 pharmacies are now being issued with body cameras as part of a £200,000 investment.

The move comes after a successful trial earlier this year in four locations – Sincil Street Food Store, Monks Road Food Store and Birchwood Pharmacy in Lincoln, as well as Woodville Road Food Store in Boston. Security manager Mark Foulds said: "We have had positive feedback from the trial sites with colleagues telling us the body cameras helped them to feel more confident and secure.

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"The cameras are front-facing so show the customer what the colleague sees, which we believe may help with de-escalating incidents or make people think twice about what they are doing and how they are treating our colleagues. They also record both video and audio which we can share with relevant authorities when we believe a crime has taken place."

Mr Foulds said that incidents vary and can include abusive and foul language, threats against colleagues or their families and in some cases, physical attacks. He added: "The vast majority of our customers are polite and respectful, but there are a minority whose actions are unacceptable.

"This not only impacts on our colleagues – who are simply trying to provide the best service they can to our communities – but it can also impact on our other customers, who can find these incidents distressing and who don’t want to see our colleagues treated in that way."

Sincil Street Food Store in the centre of Lincoln, next to the city's transport hub, was one of the pilot locations. Manager Sarah Hutt said the cameras are a welcome addition to the other security measures they have in store.

She said: "It makes us feel more confident as we know the body cameras may help defuse incidents. We enjoy working in retail and providing the best service we can to our customers but the impact of those who act in an unacceptable way can make the job difficult for myself and the team. We’re grateful to our regulars and all the other customers who use our store and treat us with respect and kindness."