Breadcrumb Trail
Music legend backs Homewatch
Encouraging community spirit and instilling a sense of pride in the area where you live are just two of the positive effects of Homewatch schemes, according to Old Trafford co-ordinator and former Inspiral Carpets frontman Tom Hingley.
The Manchester music legend kick-started his street's Homewatch scheme in May 2007 after his car was broken into at the front of his house.
"You should be proud to live where you do and you owe it to yourself to spend just half an hour or so a week trying to make it better," he said.
"Since we set our scheme up, we have had three quarterly meetings and there have been over 25 people at each meeting, which is not bad for a 40-home street.
"It's not about spying on people or telling them what to do or how to live, it's about being an active member of society and engaging with people," he said.
Contact
Mr Hingley maintains regular contact with local police community support officers Anthony Ferguson and Mike Webb, who phone him each week with information on any crime trends or incidents in the area.
He described them as 'friendly normal guys, not authoritarian or intimidating officers'.
"Say, for example, I get a phone call off one of the officers telling me that there have been a few burglaries in the area. Then I will draft a letter explaining this, print off copies and post them to everyone in the scheme. It's just about communication and sharing your concerns with people to increase vigilance.
"On one occasion I was posting leaflets and a neighbour had left a big box outside their door for a plasma screen television. Obviously, you don't want to be advertising what expensive electrical equipment you have inside your home to everyone on the street and this is the sort of thing we hope can be avoided.
"On another occasion, a new family moved in across the street and didn't know what day refuse collection took place and their bins were overflowing. This made their home look like it was empty, so I just nipped across introduced myself and told them what day the bin men came. Problem solved."
If you become a victim of crime, there is no point moaning about it but doing nothing according to the 42-year-old teacher. Indeed, he believes one of the best ways to tackle crime is for communities to work with their local police.
"It's our duty to tell the police if there is a problem," he said. "If they do not know about it, how can they do anything about it?"
Suspicious-looking salesmen prowling the estate, empty homes with open windows and that man you've never seen before in next-door's garden. We all make these casual observations from time-to-time, but many of us fail to act on them for fear of being labelled a 'meddler', 'nosy-neighbour' or 'curtain-twitcher'.
Here are a few reasons to set up a scheme:
- Intervention is a good method of prevention and acting on your suspicions could prevent a burglary at your neighbour's house or a local elderly resident being conned out of their life savings by a bogus official.
- As part of a Homewatch scheme, all members agree that they should be vigilant as far as crime prevention is concerned.
- Residents of a community possess a very specialised knowledge of their neighbourhood, which even the local 'beat bobby' may find hard to achieve. Therefore they will have a good eye for unusual activity and will be, as watch scheme members, encouraged to report it.
- The police will assist in the implementation of the scheme, maintain regular contact with the co-ordinator and attend a quarterly meeting held by the members.
- Police officers will provide crime prevention advice and alert the co-ordinator, where possible, to any crimes being committed in the area.
Chief Inspector Neil Bhole of Trafford Police said: "We should all feel safe in our homes and communities because, without a sense of security, people are prevented from living their lives to the full.
"Signing up as a Homewatch coordinator is an ideal way for residents to gain this sense of security, help improve their own communities and help the local neighbourhood policing teams to actively combat crime."
Setting up a Homewatch scheme couldn't be easier. Firstly, identify an area you wish to cover (usually between 10 and 20 houses) and then speak to the residents and decide if there is enough interest.
Then, contact community officer Ginette Splaine on 0161 856 7558 to arrange for a convenient time and location for you local police community support officer to come and talk to everyone about Homewatch to answer any questions, such as how much does it cost (free, unless you want road signs), how to get road signs or how to mark your property.
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