A supermarket boss has become one of the few non-police officers to receive a prestigious force award for his work in targeting the sale of high-strength alcohol.

Roger Grosvenor, executive officer - retail, for East of England Co-op, was awarded the County Policing Command Merit Award by Suffolk Police, in recognition of his leading role in a campaign to tackle street drinking in Ipswich, which has become a model for more than 70 schemes across the country.

Grosvenor led an initiative by all East of England Co-operative Society stores to stop selling cheap, super-strength beers and ciders last December. It kicked off a year after it became the first retailer to take part in the Suffolk-based ‘Reducing the Strength’ campaign, which stripped low-cost beer and cider with an alcohol volume of more than 6.5% from the shelves.

“We felt a Merit Award was an ideal way to recognise Roger’s substantial contribution to the Reducing The Strength campaign,” said Chief Superintendent Jon Brighton. “Without his public support, commitment and dedication there is no doubt it would not have been such a nationally recognised success. The strong partnership Roger formed between the public and private sector organisations was ground breaking.”

“Significant reductions in crime and disorder have occurred across Suffolk as a direct result of Roger’s enthusiasm and willingness to commit Co-op resources to the community in which his stores operate.”

Grosvenor said: “We recognised how anti-social behaviour in and around our stores, and towards our staff and communities, was a real and serious problem - a problem we’d always wanted to tackle but we knew we couldn’t do it alone.”

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