Warning Issued In UK Against Black Friday Sales

After last year's sales, Sir Peter Fahy, the chief constable of Greater Manchester Police, condemned poor security arrangements at some shops.

The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) is warning shops to be prepared for the sales after scuffles broke out during last year's event.

Retail stores must provide their own security arrangements during Black Friday sales later this month and consider police assistance only as a "last resort".

Officers were called to at least four supermarkets in London because of over-crowding and arrests were made as stores in Manchester and Glasgow were forced to close as shoppers clashed over bargains.

In a letter to retailers reported by The Daily Telegraph, the NPCC said officers will attend shops if necessary, but stores must take steps to avoid a repeat of the disruption at last year's sales.

Deputy chief constable Sue Fish, of the NPCC's Business and Retail Crime unit, has warned shops the sales should be appropriately staffed.

She added that police are not a substitute for adequate in-store security.

"The police will intervene if necessary to protect public order and safety," she said.

"But we should be the service of last resort, not a substitute for carefully-considered in-store security plans.

"Having to deploy officers to deal with the fallout of highly-marketed but under-staffed sales in shops diverts valuable resources from other areas of policing and is in most cases avoidable through advance planning."