Street Rangers

Our Street Ranger service is one of York Business Improvement District’s key programmes. Eboracum® are extremely proud and privileged to deliver this fully managed service to the BID. The Street Ranger remit is very broad ranged with the overall goal of keeping York Safe & Secure on behalf of the BID levy payers & partners.

The Street Rangers are the eyes and ears of the street in the city centre. They work with city partners, and take a friendly approach to deter anti-social behaviour or disorderly conduct and act as a reassuring presence to curtail potential crime. The Rangers are often the first to respond to businesses reporting low level crime.

The Street Ranger programme was launched in September 2016 and operates all year round, supporting the York BID’s initiative to boost safety and security in York city centre and is part of the BID’s overall commitment to enhancing the city’s inviting atmosphere for all who visit, work, study and live in York.

Ambassadors of York

Street Rangers serve as a welcoming presence, available to give information and assistance to residents and visitors to the city. They also log locations requiring improvements and work with relevant bodies to address any detected issues. All street rangers are professionally trained staff who have experience of working in similar capacities within the city centre.
Rangers are easy to spot in their highly visible uniforms and are positioned throughout the BID area.

Police Partnership

The Ranger’s partnership with the Police is second to none. Rangers and Police patrol together regularly which boosts information sharing, visibility and the ability for issues to be resolved quickly. Eboracum®’s partnership accreditation provides a platform for information sharing around local issues.
This approach aligns the scheme objectives/priorities and promotes a safer city centre.

Sharing City News

City news, updates and York BID programmes are communicated in various ways. The Rangers personally visit businesses and engage with members of the public to share news and information. This might be planned road closures, upcoming events, crime prevention advice or any other news.
Examples of this include raising awareness of the York Gift Card, encouraging businesses to display the York Pride Flag during the Pride parade, and passing out information about the York Ice Trail.

Front line safety

The Rangers are actively involved in keeping people safe. They are trained in river safety and rescue-line throwing – delivered by York Rescue Boat. Hazard spotting, cordons and reporting of safety concerns are all part of the Ranger remit. Businesses receive alerts and information on safety matters that might affect them. This supports the overall goal of keeping York safe and secure. Safety related training is an essential part of ongoing Ranger development.

Co-ordinated events

Campaigns and events are delivered & supported by the Rangers. Regular bicycle marking events are provided alongside the Police. York Pride, York Fashion Week, The Ice Trail, Micklesgate Soap Box race and Yorkshire Day are examples of events that are supported by Street Rangers.

Multi-agency approach

Street Rangers are key members of city centre task groups. These multi-agency groups focus on things like ASB, River Safety, Cycle Crime and Shoplifting to name a few. Our partners include the City of York Council, York Rescue Boat, Yorkshire Ambulance Service, British Transport Police, North Yorkshire Police, Street Angels, Changing Lives and others. A rangers partner meeting is held each month where all partners are invited.

Crime Prevention

Experience, Police and security related backgrounds coupled with training, gives the Street Rangers skills and knowledge to support Crime prevention activities. This can range from providing advice & information, signposting to other agencies or physically supporting with a deterrent or other effective measure. Rangers are also involved in delivering short crime prevention awareness workshops with businesses. Rangers regularly support successful prosecutions by providing body worn CCTV footage and witness statements.

Emergency Support

Being proactive in their approach, Rangers also adapt to emergency situations. They support the emergency services on a wide range of tasks such as helping to create cordons, directing traffic, providing emergency first aid and keeping people safe. This means that vital resources can be directed to the higher priority tasks.

First Aid & helping vulnerable people.

All Street Rangers are First Aid trained and regularly provide First Aid to members of the public in the city centre.
Examples of this include slips/trips/falls, seizures, injuries due to collisions and a whole host of other injuries or illnesses. Rangers carry a first aid kit with protective gloves and have access to a defibrillator. They are often made aware of missing children, or high risk missing vulnerable adults. Working with partners, they support in reuniting, and then signposting specialist support.

Dementia Friends

Street Rangers have received input on how to best help someone with Dementia.

SafeTALK Trained

Street Rangers are Safe Talk trained. A workshop on helping somebody with suicidal thoughts.

Nationally Award winning.

York BID’s Street Rangers secured the accolade of Best Safety, Security and Resilience Scheme at the annual Town and City Management Industry Awards, held in London. The awards celebrate best practice in towns and cities across the country, and the Ranger scheme in York was highlighted as a fantastic example of how town managers can make a significant change using innovative approaches.

The Street Rangers have made a huge contribution to the city centre since the scheme was launched in September 2016, and the judges were clearly impressed by the way that the BID levy – which is funded by city centre businesses – has been used to such significant effect.They are a visible presence on the streets of York, regularly talking to businesses about any concerns, and able to act quickly to issues like antisocial behaviour, working closely with North Yorkshire Police to make the city centre a safer, more welcoming place for residents and visitors alike.
York BID executive director Andrew Lowson