A town centre gripped by retail crimes is fighting back with a small battalion of ordinary people doing it for themselves and their futures.

Despite a rise in shop theft, violence and antisocial behaviour there is now an upsurge in determination to outwit and out-manoeuvre offenders.

Where once shopkeepers despaired at the lack of policing, the force is now an active part of a multi-pronged approach.

Apart from its people, the Gravesend Safe and Free Environment (GSAFE) has two other weapons in its armoury.

A shop radio system and an app called DISC allow users to keep tabs on the identity and movements of known and unknown offenders.

GSAFE members know it is a constant, almost unwinnable battle but its data on crime is accurate because it is now better reported.

Between April 2022-23, there were 1,464 incidents collated at a total cost of £72,000, according to GSAFE. Goods recovered were valued at £47,500.

In 2023-24, there were fewer incidents (1,352) but a higher total price tag of £103,000 and returned items costed at £61,000.

GSAFE’s co-ordinator Sophie Jordan said: “This is truly just the tip of the iceberg.

“This is happening all over the country. There are so many different people stealing from shops - opportunists, people who do it as a lifestyle, organised criminals and people misusing substances.

“Shops have cut back on floor staff, so there is less of a deterrent. Plus with the criminal justice system, there is little actual consequence.”

Ms Jordan is referring to the legal threshold where items stolen worth less than £200 are considered low value and not always worth pursuing, a situation which infuriates the shop workers’ union USDAW.

Owner of Safia’s Beauty Bar in New Street for 12 years, Safia Khalid, sees the issues affecting Gravesend from her premises.

A group gathering outside the now-shut Debenhams store, opposite her shop, has been “bad for business”.

Ms Khalid said: “You never see them in the morning and then they turn up. They just spend their days begging, drinking, littering, fighting and dancing.

“And it’s getting worse. They get away with it because they know nothing will happen to them.”

GSAFE chair and publican of TJ’s Iris Smith has stopped referring to retail theft as “shoplifting”.

She said: “It’s theft, pure and simple. Stealing. Calling it shoplifting almost trivialises it and the harm that it can do.

“It is not just the financial losses suffered, it is also the violence and verbal abuse that often goes with it.”

The dozens of interested parties who attended the GSAFE annual meeting on September 24 including shopkeepers, security staff, managers from national chains, police and council representatives, reflects the effectiveness of the scheme and the depth of the problem, says Ms Smith.

Traci Savill works at the Toxic Angel boutique in the Heritage Quarter, which is tooled up with signs, a CCTV camera, shop radio and DISC app.

She said: “We haven't had much theft but we did have a group of undesirables a while back causing trouble because a flat round the corner was dealing drugs.

“The shop radio system makes me feel safe and in touch.”

Cllr Jordan Meade, who represents both borough and county councils, said: “Shoplifting has an absolutely devastating effect for our business community in Gravesend.

“It’s stopping people coming into the town centre which is impacting the viability of those businesses to survive particularly as we approach the winter period when we see a reduction in footfall in the town centre.”

Kent Police data shows shoplifting in 2023-24 at its highest level for seven years.

Earlier this month, Matthew Scott, Kent’s Police and Crime Commissioner, held the inaugural Retail Crime Board (RCB) aimed at reducing shop crimes

Members of the business community, including leading retailers, customer service industry, town centre managers and senior police staffers were invited to share their experiences.

All delegates agreed shoplifting is becoming more blatant and staff retention is more difficult as a result. Another area of concern is the selling-on of stolen goods.

Mr Scott said: “The RCB…is about building trust between businesses and the police, supporting those victims of crime as well as sharing good practice and developing effective partnerships.

“We’ve already discussed how we can improve our data gathering and sharing and ways to build relationships with local beat officers.”

The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW) said the most recent survey of 5,500 retail staff undertaken earlier this year showed a spike in assaults - 18% in 2023, up 10% on 2022.

General secretary Paddy Lillis said: “The scale of assaults, abuse and threats towards shop workers and the extent of the retail crime epidemic has been a disgrace for years.”

He hopes the new Labour government will heed its call for legislation for a standalone offence of assaulting a shop worker.