1. From 19/06/03 to the 15/08/03 In the Birkby/Fartown area there have been 11 Burglaries 6 attempted burglaries 8 Thefts from Motor Vehicle 4 Thefts of Motor Vehicle 9 Damages to Motor Vehicle 2 Robberies (street robberies) 1 Arson - Car at the top of Corby St/Poplar st 2 Thefts If you have any information about these crimes then please get in touch with the police by calling Non emergencies - 0845 6060606 In an emergency please dial 999 You can contact our Community beat officers on 436729 Or email them PC Neil Moorhouse - rm423@westyorkshire.pnn.police.uk PC Dave Collet - dc437@westyorkshire.pnn.police.uk You can also contact our NHW Liaison Officer Dave Whitteron - 01484 436641 The Neighbourhood Watch Newsletter June 2003 We are hoping to have another meeting shortly. The details for this will be coming soon. Please try to make the next meeting, it’s a chance not only to find out how to prevent crime, but to meet your neighbours and help get the community spirit going! Thanks to all of those that are continuing to report the quite frequent cases of drug dealing in our area!! This information is helping the police catch those responsible. Don’t forget!!! In order for the police to act they need us to report each instance. They would like details of who they are (car registration? Description), what, when and where. It is very important that whilst gaining this information you do not put yourself at risk. Watch in secret and record the information. Do not confront! Do not be disheartened if it seems nothing is being done about you reporting these issues. Drug dealing is taken very seriously by the police and a lot of work concerning drugs is secret and undercover. Record all your information and call CRIMESTOPPERS 0800 555 111 We have had an increase in reports of silly vandalism, and a lot of our residents are growing concerned by this. Especially as it seems the majority of this is done by children! Can we please ask parents to keep a close eye on their children during the Summer Holidays. Also, can we ask those that witness any vandalism to report it to the police immediately

2. Why Join NHW? A few words from a co-ordinator Neighbour hood watch is not only a way of actively reducing crime. It also helps bring the community together, making our streets a safer place for us and our children. Crime in an area affects many things, Houses are more difficult to sell, insurance for both houses and cars rises, and you cannot feel safe. One individual cannot make a difference, but as a group we can reduce crime by attending the meetings and reporting everything you see. I recently attended the NHW co- ordinator’s meeting at Huddersfield Police station and was surprised to learn that the majority of burglaries are sneak ins! We can prevent this by ensuring our doors are locked at all times! If you are sitting out in the garden, lock your door!! If you are popping upstairs, Lock your door!! And please don’t forget to keep house keys, car keys and valuables out of sight when you go to bed on a night. If possible get someone to look after your home while you're away and take steps to make it appear lived in. Avoid a build up of post while you're away by using the "Keep Safe" service from the Royal Mail. For more details, including the cost of this service, call in at your local Post Office and ask for a form. Otherwise you could just ask a neighbour to put your mail in a safe place until you get back. Leave a contact number or details of where you are travelling to with a neighbour. If you haven't given a key to your home to a neighbour at least give them the phone number of a family member or friend. Let family or friends know you are going away and when you expect to return. Don't talk loudly about your holiday in the pub before you go or let too many people know that you're going away - you'd be surprised how word can get about! Bogus callers, as they are sometimes called, can be very convincing and very persuasive. They may say that their car has broken down and they need to phone someone for help. They may pretend to be a workman, saying that they need to check your electricity or water. They might even claim to be from the council and that they are carrying out a local survey. Whatever reason a caller gives, you need to be sure that they aren't just trying to get into your home to steal something. There are around 12,000 incidents of "distraction burglary" each year, where callers get into homes and then steal cash or valuables while the occupier is distracted in some way. Sometimes they work in pairs, with one doing the talking while the other is stealing and they often target the elderly. Be on your guard every time the doorbell rings, or there's a knock at your door. Look out of your window to see who's there first and if you don't know who the person is, open the window slightly and talk to them that way, rather than opening your door. Alternatively, have a viewer fitted in your front door so that you can take a good look at who's there first. If your eyesight isn't so good, don't worry as you can now get wide-angle viewers to help you see better. Put the door chain or door bar on before opening the door and talk through the gap. You could even fit a small mirror to the wall next to the door so that you can easily see the person you are talking to. When the caller has left and you've closed the door, don't forget to unhook the chain so that any friend or relative you have given a key to can still get in. Keeping the chain on the door, ask callers from the council or any other organisation to pass through some identification. If you need your glasses to check this don't think it's rude to close the door and go and get them. A genuine caller won't mind. If you're still not sure, ask the caller to leave and tell them to write and make an appointment so that someone else can be with you the next time they call. The basic rule is if you don't know the person at your door don't let them in.