There has been a big spike in shoplifting in Reading over the last year, with hundreds of more incidents recorded compared to the previous year.
Statistics for the amount of crimes that have been committed over a one-year period have been revealed for Reading.
The figures recorded by Thames Valley Police show a spike in the amount of shoplifting offences, with 2,606 incidents being recorded in 2024.
Year-on-year, that’s an increase of 699 recorded shoplifting cases.
The statistics show a total of 17,365 crimes were recorded by police in 2024, with 16 per cent being solved.
The figures were presented by police at a recent council meeting.
Explaining the statistics, Felicity Parker, Local Command Unit (LCU) Commander for Berkshire West said: “We can see there has been a reduction in crime.
“I’m going to focus on how many crimes have taken place, but then also our solved crime rate, how many outcomes we have solved, either taking the offender to court or giving them an out of court resolution, so the victim does have some closure and understanding of what’s taken place.
“I’m really proud that we’ve had a 16 per cent outcome rate for our victims here in Reading.
“There are areas where we have really excelled. Yes, we’ve had a significant increase in the amount of shoplifting crimes that have been reported.
“But that is because we’ve been paying particular attention to those business communities and seeing what we can do for those retailers.
“For every crime that takes place, we are holding someone to account for 30 per cent of those crimes.
“There are a lot of prolific offenders that are targeting many of the businesses and we are now getting hold of them.”
On shoplifting, Micky Leng (Labour, Whitley), lead councillor for planning and assets said: “I thank you for your high-profile campaign on shoplifting, I think it’s worked really well.
“Particularly in South Reading, it was quite prolific, to the point where people would come back from the shop and say ‘oh the Co-op was getting robbed again’ so I went to the one round the corner.
“So that’s working really well.”
Councillor Leng was referring to the Co-op in Whitley Wood Road, which had become a hotspot for stolen items.
Police activity last December saw a suspected ‘prolific shoplifter’ of that Co-op being arrested.
Work of the police Reading Town Centre Neighbourhood Team saw nine people charged with 16 shoplifting offences this February.
The figures were presented to the council’s policy committee meeting on Monday, April 7.
The police presentation takes place annually, and was attended by chief constable Jason Hogg and Matthew Barber, the Conservative police and crime commissioner who was re-elected to his role last year.
