Todwick Neighbourhood Watch Newsletter

May 2009

Welcome to all those who have signed up to the Todwick Neighbourhood Watch since our last quarterly newsletter in February 2009. We hope that you find these newsletters informative and useful and we always value your feedback.

South Yorkshire Community Foundation

Some 12 months ago Todwick neighbourhood Watch received a grant from the South Yorkshire Community Foundation towards the purchase of equipment and the day to day running costs of our scheme. We are most grateful for their financial help and are pleased to formally acknowledge their funding.

Charity Clothing Bags

We are pleased to inform you that several people who live in Todwick work as volunteers for the charity - Save the Children. They are prepared to take unwanted items to the Broomhill charity shop of Save the Children. For further details, please contact Anne Rusling on 770081, or other helpers on 770816 or 772133.

BUT... Also, please be aware that in Todwick we have recently come across some charity bag collections where the donated items have not been used to benefit the charity for which they were intended. The South Yorkshire Police and Rotherham Trading Standards have been directly involved. If you wish to check out any collection before donating, please contact Norman Anderson.

Your Police Community Support Officers in Todwick

We would like to welcome Ashley Hill, our new Police Community Support Officer who will be working in Todwick with Paul Dimelow our current Support Officer.

Young Children - Think Bubble

We are pleased to tell you that we have managed to obtain a new supply of "Think Bubble" packs issued by the Home Office. These are designed for parents, guardians or teachers to teach 4 to 7 year olds how to stay safe. Each one has an audio and video tape and parental / guardian notes. Packs are free of charge and can be obtained by contacting Norman Anderson.

Rothercare

Rothercare is an alarm service, organised by Rotherham MBC, to help people live safely in their own homes. It is designed for people who may be classed as "vulnerable", irrespective of their age. The alarm button can be worn round the neck or on the wrist and provides a 24 hour per day helpline for emergency situations. For more details including weekly costs, please telephone 01709 371897. It could be a lifesaver.

Our Annual General Meeting

Will you please note that this year the Neighbourhood Watch Annual General Meeting is to be moved from July to October. This will move it away from the start of the main school holiday period. The actual date will be advised in due course.

Door to Door Salesmen

During the last few weeks we have received reports from several Todwick residents about door to door salesmen who will not leave when residents have said "No thank you". If this happens to you and they will not leave your doorstep when asked to go, please try to get the caller's name and the telephone number of the company for whom they work. You can then either complain directly to the company concerned or contact Norman Anderson for further help.

If you are not expecting the caller, always use the door chain before opening the door. Always ask for identification. If you do not want their product or service, you have a legal right to refuse to buy. If you feel vulnerable, keep your personal alarm handy. For any resident who has not got one of these free alarms, please contact Norman Anderson.

Summer holiday time is here again

As the start of the holiday season is now upon us, it is perhaps worth thinking about what you can do to protect your property whilst you are away from home.

One of the best ways is to ensure that your burglar alarm is in full working order - consider having it checked by an engineer - and use it.
Remember to cancel the milk & newspapers.
If it is visible, ask a friend or neighbour to move the post away from the door.
Ensure all doors and windows are locked, but don't leave any spare keys in the house.
Make your home look as normal as possible.
Ask a neighbour to move your bins for emptying and bring them back after the collection. This includes the blue bag and blue box on the appropriate day.
If you draw your curtains at night, maybe a neighbour could do this for you whilst you are away.
Finally, be careful when talking about your holiday plans in public. You don't know who is listening.

Many burglaries are done by opportunists, don't make it easy for them by leaving tell tale signs that you are away.

Calling all caravanners

Are you using your caravan or mobile home this year? We still have portable carbon monoxide alarms for sale at £18 each. If you have a gas burner, cooker, heater in your unit, it makes sense to take a carbon monoxide alarm. Don't fall victim to the silent killer.

And one for the gardeners...

Hopefully soon the weather will get warmer! Imagine the scene - you may be out in the garden cutting the lawns, painting the fence, weeding, or just sat in a garden chair admiring your handy-work. Perhaps dozing in the sunshine, at peace with the world. But most garden tools are portable, easily and quickly stolen and will probably end up at a car boot sale to be sold for a fraction of their cost. You will then be left having to replace them. For the sake of a couple of minutes, why not lock the tools away in the shed or garage straight after you have used them.

Crimestoppers

Thanks to the public of South Yorkshire, calls made to Crimestoppers have resulted in 100 arrests and the recovery of £800.000 of drugs and other property. 76 arrests were for drug offences and 10 for road traffic crimes. The remainder were for criminal damage, assault and burglary offences. Crimestoppers is an independent charity and gives people the opportunity to pass on vital pieces of information, anonymously. Tel 0800 555 111 FREEPHONE

Finally, the last 3 months crime figures for Todwick.

Over the last 3 months there have been 17 reported incidents in Todwick. Sadly this is slightly higher than we have seen in the recent past.

Burglary with intent - dwelling	1
Burglary with intent - other	2
Burglary in building - not dwelling	2
Burglary in a dwelling	1
Criminal damage - vehicle	3
Theft of motor vehicle	1
Theft from motor vehicle	4
Other miscellaneous thefts	2
Common assault	1

Thank you for being a member of Todwick Neighbourhood Watch. When you have read your newsletter, we would ask that it be passed to someone you know in the village who is not a member. 62% of Todwick households are currently signed up to the scheme. 38% are not members and are missing out on the benefits.

Norman Anderson (chair)