NEWSLETTER

 

Diary Dates

2002 meeting dates are: 13 February, 10 April, 12 June, 14 August, 9 October and 4 December.

All meetings are on Wednesday at 8 pm at the Billericay Football Club, everyone is welcome

 

 

 

Crime Figures from mid September to end of  October

Burglary

24 burglaries in this period.  Only about half were committed in the dark, the rest in broad day light, often on busy roads - so please keep a sharp look out and call the Police if you see anything suspicious.  The locations of the burglaries were:  Trinity Road, Burstead Drive, Mountnessing Road (2), High Street (2) (some goods later recovered), Perry Street, Tye Common Road (2), Stock Road (goods later recovered), Southend Road, Jacqueline Gardens, Carson Road, Little Norsey Road, Broom Road, Noak Hill Road, Grange Road, Sadlers Close, Bell Farm Green,  Radford Close, Coach Mews, Westbourn Gardens, Newlands Road, Celandine Close.  A total of £68,915 worth of peoples property was stolen and the thieves caused more than £2,780 worth of damage in the process.

Theft From Motor Vehicles

39  Theft from Motor Vehicles continues to be the major crime.  Hot spots are cars parks, especially the Railway Car Park and Waitrose Car Park, and Radford Way.  It is not always high value goods that the scum are after, in one case £50 worth of damage was caused to car to get a £3 packet of cigarettes.  The crimes were committed in these areas:  Pilgrim Pub, Hillside Road, Mill Road, Stockwell Close, Kingsway, Kevin Close, Mountnessing Road, Radford Way (7), Hannikans Farm, Frith Wood lane, Waitrose Car Park (5), St. Mary’s Avenue, Brookside, Lake Meadows, Westbourn Gardens, Thynne Road, Warren Close, Morris Avenue, Edith Lane, Railway Station Car Park (3), Bootham Road, Somerfields Car Park (Queens Park), Hollyford, Hill House Drive, Uplands Road, Grange Road, Burstead Plough.  A total of £17,603 worth of property was stolen and £5,380 worth of damage caused.

Theft of Motor Vehicles

6 There were ‘only’ six cases of theft of motor vehicles this period, probably because cars have improved security features and the fact that most Billericay thieves want to steal small goods that they can sell quickly to fund their drug habit. Vehicles were stolen from the following locations:  Hollyford, High Street, Hickstars Road, Salesbury Drive, Western Road, Connaught Way.  The total value of vehicles stolen came to £18,825 and £450 worth of damage was caused when stealing them.

Criminal Damage

20 cases of criminal damage, the most significant being in Connaught Way where criminals were smashing car windows.  Areas damaged were: Dorchester Road, Connaught Way (4), Rosebay Avenue, Norsey View Drive, Waitrose Car Park (2), Meadow Rise, Perry Street, Porchester Road, The Redingle, Grange Road, School Road, High Street (2), Norsey Road, Patricia Gardens.  The estimated cost of the damage we all have to pay for is £4,195, which is probably understated.

 

If you see anything suspicious, call the Police on 01277 631212 or 999.  Your call is important

Sergeant Pat Mahony moves to Basildon

Pat is moving to Basildon as Inspector to head up our Community Safety Team.  Pat has given Neighbourhood Watch a huge amount of help and support during his stay at Billericay and we give him our best wishes for his new job.

Street Lamps

Now the dark nights are here, working street lamps are more important than ever.  If you have lamps in your street that are not working, call Street Care (part of Basildon Council) on 01268 294949, tell them the street name and lamppost number (or location if it does not have a number) and they will get it fixed.

Appropriate Seat Belts

Billericay Police are very concerned about the increasing trend of using inappropriate seatbelts for young children.  Standard seatbelts are designed for an average height  person, not for young children.  If a standard seat belt is used to secure a child, the belt will fit across the child's neck and in an accident it will contribute to injuries rather than reduce them.  Children should  be secured in seats made for their height and weight.  The seats should meet British Standards specifications.    Remember, all it takes is one accident . . . . . .

Seen last Saturday in the High Street, a lady, with three unsecured children in the car, reversing into the High Street and talking on her mobile phone at the same time!

Billericay Police will be stopping vehicles and reminding drivers of the dangers of  using a mobile phone while driving and the requirements regarding seat belts.  The rules are there for our safeguard, not to annoy us.

Have you seen this person?

He is white, average build, auburn hair, long auburn sideburns, drives a black “E” registration Ford Fiesta.  Police would like to talk to him about a spate of burglaries in the district.  If you have any information, please call 01277 631212 or PC Kevin Hopton on  01268 244028 - you do not have to leave your name if you do not wish to.

Burglary rate is up.

The burglary rate increased during October.  The Police are fairly sure most of the burglaries were the work of one person - see ‘Have you seen this Person’.

Typically the burglary rate does increase this time of year, mainly due to the dark nights and all those Christmas presents that  are purchased and taken home.

Reduce the risk of Burglary

Almost all domestic burglaries are opportunist crimes - the thief does not spend time watching the property and planning how to break in.  Most of the time the thief sees an opportunity, such as an open window, and takes it.  The most popular items to steal are small (easy to carry and throw away if challenged) and high value, cash, jewellery, credit cards and cheque books.  This is not to say that TVs, videos, hi-fis, etc do not get stolen, they do, but the thief is more exposed when removing bulky items from homes and such equipment is easier to security mark (you have marked all your property, haven’t you?).

What the thief is looking for is easy to enter, unoccupied property.  You can reduce the risk of being a target, especially over the Christmas period when many houses are left unattended during the party season.

Try to think how you can make your home look occupied when you are out.

·  Install a timer to switch lamps on and off at various times during the evening.  Local DIY stores now sell timers at less than £5 each.

·  Leave a radio on, not loud enough to disturb your neighbours, but loud enough to be heard through the letterbox or a window pane.

·  If possible, leave a car parked on your drive or outside your house.

·  Ask a neighbour to pop in and close the curtains at dusk (and open them in the morning if you are away over night).

·  If you are going to be away for some time, ask a neighbour to check on your house, perhaps put a bag of rubbish outside your house on ‘bin day’, move the post and newspapers from your door, just make the house look occupied.

·  Offer to do the same for a neighbour.

 

 

 

 

 

Security Goods for Sale

Just a reminder that we have stocks of security products that  may interest you, including Security Tax Disk Holders (£1), Golf Marking Kits (£4), Haynes Security Manuals (£1) and personal attack alarms (£5).

We also have Security Marker Pens (free) and plastic straps to keep your hub caps attached to your car wheels (free).

If you need help or advice with security marking, please ask us, we have some good information on the subject and some security marking kits you can borrow to mark heavier items.

 

All best wishes for a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year from Essex Police, Crystal Print, Decibels and Billericay Neighbourhood Watch.

November Newsletter

Sorry, but I just ran out of time and could not finish it time to get it delivered to the co-ordinators by the end of the month.

Talking of co-orinators

I would like to say a big thank you to them for all the work they put in year after year to deliver the newsletter and to keep Billericay Neighbourhood Watch going.

Personal Attack Alarms

We have had a run on our supplies and more are on order, so if you have ordered one, we will get it for you as soon as we possible can.

Who’s Who

Police Inspector:                                Richard Croft - 01277 631212

Community Liaison                                PC Kevin Hopton                                

Officer:                                Direct Line  - 01268 244028

N.W. Direct Line                                01277 633090

It is probable that much of this crime was drug related.  If you think that drug dealers users are in your area, please call Kevin Hopton on 01268 244028 or Crime Stoppers on  0800 555 111. you do not need to give your name.  Your information could stop a crime or even save a life.

Do you know someone who wants to join Neighbourhood Watch?

If you wish to join your local scheme or start a scheme in your area, please call us at the Police Station.  We will be pleased to give you the name of the local Co-Ordinator or help you start a new scheme.

Crime Cannot Flourish in a Community that Cares.

Visit the Billericay Neighbourhood Watch site at:    www.btinternet.com/~billericay.nw/site/index.html

If you see anything suspicious, call the Police on 01277 631212 or 999.  Your call is important.