Anti Social Behaviour, distraction burglay, street crime

domestic violence, domestic burglary, drug and alcohol abuse

Local Neighbourhood Watch Scheme

What is Neighbourhood Watch (NHW)?
A way of developing close links within the community and with the Police, Local Authority and other organisations. The main aim is to help reduce crime and the fear of crime by:

Greater vigilance
Better crime prevention
Encouraging a better community spirit
An overall improvement of the area in which you live.

Why do we need Neighbourhood Watch?
Home Office figures show a decline in reported crime, however, there is still a lot of work to be done in reducing crime and just as importantly in reducing the fear of crime. Police numbers are growing slowly, but they cannot combat crime on their own. People feel less fearful of crime if there is a good community spirit. Criminals feel uncomfortable committing crime in such areas as they are more likely to be noticed, reported and caught. By helping the Police you are helping yourself and the community in which you live.

How does Neighbourhood Watch (NHW) Work?
It works in different ways in different places and there is no hard and fast rules as to how a scheme should operate.

All that is needed is:

A Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator
A willingness of the residents to be involved
In general the Police pass information to the Co-ordinator who then passes it on to the residents who are members of NHW in their area. In Heddlu Gwent Police area access is available to use a system called Ringmaster. This is a computer system which allows the Police to pass messages to a large number of people.

Some areas have Area Co-ordinators and small Associations/Committees and some schemes do fund raising, but this is not a requirement. The scheme is run by the residents for the residents, with help from the Police. There is a formal structure to NHW, but this does not have to impact on a local scheme.

How Do I Join Neighbourhood Watch?
Firstly, check to see if there is a scheme in your street/area. You can do this by contacting your local Police Co-ordinator. If there is no scheme in your area they can give you help and advice on how to start a scheme.

Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinators can have their details placed on the Ringmaster system so they can receive automated messages. Further details can be obtained from your Local Neighbourhood Watch Watch Co-ordinator.

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