Neighbourhood Watch In Telford Continues To Flourish

With more than 650 schemes and almost 15,000 households under its protection, Neighbourhood Watch (NHW) in Telford & Wrekin continues to go from strength to strength.

However, Telford's NHW Administrator Mrs Anne Walker would once again like to encourage residents of Telford & Wrekin to consider forming their own scheme if their area does not already have one.

Although a separate organisation to the police, local officers from West Mercia Police support and work closely with NHW co-ordinators to create safer and more secure communities by deterring crime and anti-social behaviour, providing community safety advice and encouraging neighbourliness.

And it is not just about preventing and reducing crime, with effective schemes also providing reassurance, building community spirit and confidence among local people that they can tackle issues which concern them.

"With almost 15,000 homes involved with Neighbourhood Watch schemes we already have fantastic coverage here in Telford. However, we are always keen to encourage more people to set up Neighbourhood Watch in their area," said Mrs Walker.

"Telford & Wrekin is generally a very safe place to live but everyone can play their part in reducing crime even further. Joining Neighbourhood Watch is one of those ways."

Neighbourhood Watch works closely with the police in Telford, particularly with local police and community support officers, with regards to crime prevention advice, intelligence sharing and identifying issues of local concern.

Often co-ordinators will distribute community safety advice on the police's behalf, getting advice and warnings out about things such as bogus callers, garden and home security and personal safety.

Mrs Walker continued:  "I am very proud to have been the NHW Administrator in Telford for a number of years and it has given me pleasure to see our membership grow significantly as more and more people register an interest.

"During this time excellent relationships have been forged between NHW Schemes, Local Policing Teams and our various partner agencies such as Telford & Wrekin Council and Wrekin Housing Trust.

"The close relationships that we have developed provide a major benefit for everyone involved and play an important part in assisting West Mercia Police in their quest to make the Borough a safer place to live and work.

"In addition, Ringmaster - the Telford & Wrekin Community Messaging System - continues to be an extremely useful tool as it allows our Neighbourhood Watch administration team to phone, text or e-mail key figures within a community with crime prevention advice or warning messages - about suspicious vehicles for example - that these contacts can then pass on to residents registered with their local NHW scheme.

"Ringmaster - which you can sign up to at www.twpcm.org - is yet another benefit of being a member of Neighbourhood Watch and I would be delighted to hear from anyone who wishes to know more about setting up a scheme in their own area."

For more information about Neighbourhood Watch in your area or how to set up a scheme, please contact Mrs Anne Walker at Malinsgate Police Station on 01952 214 604 or email anne.walker@westmercia.pnn.police.uk.

Issued: Thursday 2 September 2010