Yesterday the government made an announcement stating that assaulting a retail worker is now being made a standalone offence. This news has been extremely well received by not only the retail industry, but by the wider population as well (the security industry included).

The British Retail Consortium and other retail based organisations have campaigned for this piece of legislation for over five years and with good reason. Over the last few years retail crime statistics have been shocking. In 2022-2023 there was a 50% increase in violent & abusive incidents against retail workers.

The hope is that this new legislation will improve police response (currently rated poor in retail instances) and offer retail workers a greater feeling of safety & security.

SGC Security Services are beyond pleased that the need for this legislation has been recognised and addressed by the government. We hope for a positive change in the wake of this new law.