Licencing Operation's

Exeter Neighbourhood team are focused on nine priorities, namely: Engagement, Shop theft, Counter Drugs, Serious and Organised Crime, Evening and Night Time Economy, Violence Against Women and Girls, Violence, Anti-Social Behaviour in the residential areas and Anti-Social Behaviour in the city centre.

The strategy is

• Places – reclaim contested spaces,  this could be a bench or a street,


• Partnerships – create local networks to involve statutory partners, business, residents, charities and initiatives


• People – marginalise perpetrators behaviour, which seeks to understand individuals and address behaviours.

Issued 01 July 2025

Update: 20 May 2025 - Action Taken

Exeter is a safe city, although like towns and cities, it has its challenges. By acknowledging these issues and working in partnership, we can identify the best solutions for our community.

Each priority is managed through a problem-solving plan, owned and delivered by a Sergeant within the Neighbourhood Team and involves weekly or monthly tactical meetings with partners and agencies across the city. The nine priorities are co-ordinate at a monthly meeting which uses a people, places and partnerships focus to ensure activity is in the correct location, against the behaviours of the correct people and by the current agency.

Update: 27 October 2024 - Alcohol Test Purchasing

On Saturday 26th October 2024, Devon and Cornwall Police’s Exeter Police cadets, past and present, alongside Volunteer Leaders and Alcohol Licencing officer caried out Alcohol test purchasing across 15 stores across Exeter City centre, with 8 failing to correctly challenge and ask for Identification. We will continue to work with premises’ and will continue to carry out further checks in the coming months.

During one visit, 2 shoplifters had stolen alcohol from a premises, over half of this was managed to be returned by police staff – with one bottle being broken!

Thank you to the premises visited for your cooperation.

Actioned 01 October 2025

Operation Sceptre-Knife Crime and Possession of a dangerous weapon.

In response to a national trend in increased knife crime and the carriage of dangerous items, the Neighbourhood team have prioritised resources in this area.

Issued 01 July 2025

No action

Pro-actively working with partner agencies/community to deal with Anti-Social Behaviour

Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) causes significant distress and we prioritise dealing with it as swiftly as possible.

Such behaviour includes intimidation, abusive language and public alcohol & drug use.

Our activity:

• Seizing alcohol and drugs


• Using stop and search powers


• Dispersing problem groups


• Arresting offenders


• Using ASB escalation powers (in conjunction with partners), to place offenders on court orders.


• Operation Protractor refers to a specific operation to prevent Youth ASB across Exeter. This is in response to a trend seen in other UK towns and cities (involving groups of youths and youth gangs)

Issued 01 July 2025

No action

Operation Tarak: Tackling 'County Lines' drug crime in Exeter.

The neighbourhood team are involved in Operation Tarak, a significant police effort to disrupt so called ‘County lines’ (the importation of Class A drugs into the city by Organised Crime Gangs, from larger cities in the UK) and the crime and disorder this creates.

Our activity, in partnership with other agencies and based on current intelligence, focuses on:

• Patrolling the worst affected areas


• Visiting vulnerable people at risk of being ‘cuckooed’ (individuals whose properties are taken over by drug gangs)


• Stopping and searching drug dealers


• Preventing young people from being used as dealers through education and diversion.


• Gathering as much information/intelligence as possible to achieve the aims above.

Issued 01 July 2025

No action

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Issued 01 July 2025

No action