Commissioner's column: The close-knit Devon seaside community uniting to make life better for locals and visitors

L-R, Councillor Keith Underhill, Commissioner Alison Hernandez and Jo Gask, owner of The Healthy Pet Shop

Devon and Cornwall are truly blessed to be home to some of the most stunning beaches in the UK which is why every summer we see tourists flock to the region to soak up their beauty and enjoy what they have to offer. 

The inevitable downside of that is crime rates do increase which puts an additional drain on already stretched policing resources. Every seaside resort suffers from its share of unwanted problems, most commonly being antisocial behaviour, shoplifting, domestic violence and abuse, drug and alcohol issues and homelessness. 

Last week, I visited Teignmouth in Devon after being contacted by council representatives a few weeks ago over concerns about issues in the town. Unfairly, a negative media spotlight was cast upon the town recently with a headline naming it ‘Britain’s most crime-ridden beach’. 

Its neighbourhood policing team took to social media to “set the record straight”, stating it believed the article was “misleading and an inaccurate representation” due to the way statistics had been collected and presented. 

I can assure that the picture painted by the national media was far from the reality I experienced during my personal enjoyment of the August bank holiday music festival and a work visit on a busy sunny afternoon last Friday. I met with Teignmouth Town Councillor Keith Underhill, who is also chair of the town’s Chamber of Commerce, Teignmouth Town Council Clerk Iain Wedlake and independent shop owner Jo Gask. 

It instantly became apparent on my walk around that Teignmouth is a thriving, close knit town with incredible and enviable community spirit. Traders, residents and to representatives are strongly united to make it not just a wonderful place to visit but also to live and work. 

I heard how among the top issues it is battling against are shoplifting, antisocial behaviour and drugs. To try and combat them, the town council has recently invested in state-of-the-art CCTV that is using AI and facial recognition technology to tackle offenders. 

The importance of CCTV is why I am shortly due to launch my CCTV funding scheme which is making £125,000 available in 2025/26 from the Strategic Interventions fund. Town and parish councils will be able to apply for funding for additional CCTV capacity which will help tackle the four priorities set out in my Police and Crime Plan - reducing anti-social behaviour, drugs and alcohol, serious violence and theft. 

I have been asked what I can do to directly help Teignmouth combat its issues and I am delighted that I have been able to offer all businesses free access to a powerful tool to fight back against retail crime.   

Sign-ups have already started rolling in for a subscription to the UK Partners Against Crime (UKPAC) Business Crime Reduction Solution which I am funding for 12 months. It provides a quicker and easier way for businesses to report issues such as shoplifting, antisocial behaviour and violence to police. 

The system is an online portal, also available as a smartphone app, that enables traders to easily report crimes and share intelligence, empowering communities to work together against persistent and repeat offenders. Police can then access this information to build stronger evidence files, increasing the chances of successful prosecutions and reducing crime on the high street. 

The more traders that sign up, the more effective the tool becomes and I was heartened to hear directly from many traders how keen they are to trial the initiative. Jo Gask, who runs The Healthy Pet Shop, has been leading the way in the town to get people on board and I am very grateful for her efforts and tenacity to bring about change. 

UKPAC is already being piloted in Torquay as part of my wider Street Focus: Torquay project — a multi-agency effort to tackle antisocial behaviour (ASB) and improve community safety in the town. Early results have already revealed it is working with successful convictions having been secured thanks to the data provided through UKPAC from traders. 

My goal is for Teignmouth to become the first town in Devon and Cornwall to have all businesses signed up to it, including those working within the nighttime economy. 

My overall aim is to rollout UKPAC throughout the region to ensure that all communities have access to this vital tool that can and will combat crime and make our towns and cities safer and happier places to live. 

For more information about UKPAC and to sign up visit https://uk-pac.com/