Poundland makes major change to 800 UK stores with staff to wear BODYCAMS as part of nationwide clampdown

BUDGET retailer Poundland has made major changes to 800 stores in a nationwide clampdown against shoplifting and staff abuse.

The discount store announced the "Against Retail Crime" initiative on January 13 which include employees wearing bodycams on their uniform.

As part of a campaign to tackle theft and harassment, Poundland said it was investing "significantly" in security measures in 800 branches.

Poundland’s head of loss prevention Christina Jesty said: “The rate of store theft and colleague abuse has accelerated significantly across our stores in the last 18 months, and this has been very challenging for our people.

"Whether it’s store theft undermining all our colleagues’ hard work, or incidents of violence and abuse making our colleagues feel unsafe at work, something must change."

Shoplifting statistics have spiked recently with 443,995 shoplifting offences recorded for the 12 months to March 2024.

This was up 30 per cent on the 342,428 cases in the previous year.

It's the highest figure is the highest since current Office for National Statistics (ONS) records began in 2003.

Shoplifting adds around 6p to each store transaction, which tots up to £1.8billion lost in stolen goods.

Jesty continued: "At Poundland, we pride ourselves on being a value-led high street retailer, where protecting our colleagues goes hand in hand with protecting our prices.

"That is why we’re saying enough is enough and beginning a campaign to support our front-line teams and crack down on retail crime across our stores.”

It's estimated that a whopping 670 shoplifting offences go unsolved every day.

Staff at the bargain store will now be wearing headsets to communicate with each other when a challenging situation or legal incident unfolds in the shop.

They rolled out a trial which include Motorola Solutions VT100 body cameras to catch shoplifters and record abusive customers.

These bodycams are also used as a visual deterrent as thieves are less likely to strike when they think they're being recorded.

Undercover guards will also be stationed at a range of stores to apprehend suspected perpetrators and act as a further deterrent.

The cameras will be given to the high-street stores with the "most significant crime" issues.

Poundland claims violence has reduced against workers by 11 per cent since the use of cameras has been implemented.

Theft has also reportedly dropped by a "marked reduction."

The retailer said it is now working with officers and local enforcement agencies to prevent retail crime.

It will receive support from undercover cops and will share CCTV to assist with potential prosecutions.