Keep Your Property Safe In The New Year

Detective Chief Inspector Alan Edwards from the West Mercia Police command team in Telford is advising people who received lots of lovely presents at Christmas to make sure they do not become an easy target for burglars. 

New gifts such as electrical items should be security marked and the empty boxes should not be left on view outside to let burglars know the type of items you have in your home.

An awareness week starts on Monday 4 January 2010 across Herefordshire, Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin and Worcestershire to raise awareness of crime prevention tactics and arrest those who make other people's lives a misery.

Following on from the success of Operation Protect in April and October this year the force has decided to have another week dedicated to action on burglary. Most burglaries are carried out by opportunistic thieves and householders should make sure their homes are safe and secure. Make sure you leave lights on and use timer switches to make burglars think you are home and keep doors and windows securely locked.

DCI Edwards, Crime Manager in Telford & Wrekin, said:"In reality less than one per cent of homes are burgled each year in West Mercia. However we can see from the results of our Crime and Safety survey that domestic burglary is one of the main issues which causes concern among our communities. Fear of burglary causes householders anxiety and there are some simple steps people can take, such as better lighting, to help address those fears."

Posters and leaflets are being distributed in local communities to spread the good advice and West Mercia Police are also supporting the Home Office's ‘Let's Keep Crime Down' crime campaign which launched on Boxing Day. The campaign helps people minimise their risk of becoming a victim of burglary, theft from vehicles, robbery and identity crime, by providing practical crime prevention advice that can easily be acted upon. Adverts will appear on national TV, radio and in newspapers. 

DCI Edwards added: "Levels of crime in Telford & Wrekin are low but we want to make them even lower.  We are committed to targeting persistent burglars and bringing them to justice to ensure local communities remain a safe place to live and work.

"To demonstrate our commitment to reducing crime in the area, on Thursday we will be hosting a crime prevention stand outside Primark in the town centre where our officers will be on hand to offer advice on how to protect your property against opportunist thieves. Anyone in the town centre on Thursday is encouraged to pop and see our officers as they'll be able to pass on tips about property marking, simple security ideas and personal security that should help people keep themselves safe.

"We will also be visiting a number of people who have found themselves the victims of crime on more than one occasion to ensure that they are now doing all they can to protect themselves, and also to reassure them that we will be targeting known and suspected offenders in their area in an attempt to catch the individual who is causing the problems."

Anyone who has information about crime in their area should call West Mercia Police on 0300 333 3000 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555111.

Find out more about keeping your property safe and secure in our online Advice Centre .