Business can avoid falling victim to crime over the festive period
THIS WEEK businesses throughout the UK are preparing to shut down for Christmas but with many premises and workplaces remaining empty throughout the festive season, the risks of falling victim to crime inevitably increase.
Workplace equipment supplier Slingsby, which supplies more than 35, 000 workplace products across all industries, often experiences an increase of orders at this time of year from organisations that have suffered burglaries and want to make themselves less attractive to criminals in future. As a result, the company has compiled a checklist to help workplaces stay crime free over the holiday season.
Lee Wright, Group Sales and Marketing Director at Slingsby, explains: “Over the festive season commercial premises will often be empty for long periods and can therefore be attractive to criminals. However many burglars are opportunists so ideally workplaces should try to make themselves as unattractive to thieves as possible.
“The weeks leading up to Christmas are often very busy so when it comes to locking up buildings, it can often end up being a rush and simple things can get overlooked. We’ve put together a list of key considerations for workplaces before they close for Christmas and ideally one person in every workplace should be responsible for carrying out a final check to make sure everything is secure. Although some of it might sound obvious, taking time to plan ahead can save lots of time and money in the New Year.”
Key considerations when locking up premises for the festive period include:-
- Lighting – Ensure that all external lighting is working and that it is programmed to come on every night.
- Signage – Make sure any signage that highlights security measures is clean, clear and readable.
- Rubbish – Don’t leave anything lying around outside that could help a criminal break in or be used to start a fire.
- Windows – Approximately a third of burglars enter buildings through insecure windows, so checking they’re all properly closed will help keep thieves out.
- Valuables – Ideally these should be locked away securely, or removed from the premises.
- Access – Look closely at who needs to have access to the premises over the Christmas period and who requires keys.
- Alarms – Are they turned on and if they go off, who will respond to them?
- Deliveries – Be sure to cancel any deliveries that may turn up during the holiday period.
- IT – Christmas is a great time to ensure everything is backed-up and that copies are securely stored off the premises.
- External security – If a security firm checks the premises, who do they contact in an emergency and how often will they check premises over the holiday period?
