Chelmsford For You BID
Chelmsford Is Live on ShopSafe Alert
Chelmsford For You, the city’s business improvement district, launched ShopSafe Alert and a radio scheme with Essex Police in March 2026. Businesses report incidents as they happen, help each other identify offenders, and officers see it all on their phones. See how your BID can do the same.
“Before Alert, We Were Always Playing Catch Up”
Henry Barnes sits between the businesses the BID represents, the police and the council. He needs to hear about anti-social behaviour and retail theft fast enough to act on it.
Now reports arrive in real time. When a business posts an image, others often recognise the person, so the business can go to the police with a name.
- Real-time reports the BID can act on straight away
- Members help identify offenders from shared images
- A better picture of each incident for the police
“This Will Be Huge for Chelmsford”
The Essex Police Business Crime Team supports business victims of crime and works to bring the most prolific and repeat offenders to justice.
Officers have Alert on their phones, so they see what businesses share as it happens. For PC Lee, what sets it apart is that it’s a formal, structured way to share information.
- Alert on Essex Police officers’ phones
- A formal, structured information sharing platform
- Focused on prolific and repeat offenders
Alerts Across the High Street and the Indoor Market
Pauline Ryder looks after both Chelmsford’s high street market and its indoor market, every day.
Alert pops up on her computer whenever a new incident is reported. As more retailers join the radio scheme, she’ll hear about incidents the moment they happen.
- New incidents show on her computer straight away
- Very easy and very visual to use
- Radios to hear about incidents immediately
The Chelmsford Model
Businesses, the BID and Essex Police working together.
This compliant way of information sharing has been absolutely vital for the city centre. It’s created a real sense of community within our businesses. People feel listened to.
Alert sits at the heart of Chelmsford For You’s partnership, which brings together:
- BID businesses
- Chelmsford Markets
- Essex Police Business Crime Team
- Chelmsford City Council
What Your BID Gets with Alert
The platform Chelmsford For You chose for the city centre, ready for your district.
Real-Time Reporting
Businesses report anti-social behaviour and retail theft as it happens, so the BID can act straight away instead of playing catch up.
- Real-time reports
- Low-level incidents
A Community That Identifies Offenders
When an image goes up, other businesses often know who it is. That name goes to the police with the report.
- Shared images
- Offender profiles
Police on the Same Platform
Essex Police officers have Alert on their phones and see what businesses share as it happens.
- Police access
- On any phone
Bigger Cases, Linked Up
Reports from across the city are matched to the same offender, helping the police build a bigger case and make arrests.
- Linked incidents
- Case building
Partnership
Chelmsford's business improvement district, running Alert and the radio scheme for city centre businesses
Essex Police
Business Crime Team officers with Alert on their phones
ShopSafe
Technology partner providing Alert and Smart Radio
Bring the Chelmsford Model to Your District
See the platform Chelmsford For You chose, and talk through what it would look like for your levy payers and police.
