Neighbourhood Watch Newsletter

Duffield is a village, situated next to the River Derwent in Derbyshire at the lower end of the

Pennines around five miles north of Derby, England.

March 2009 - Neighbourhood Watch Newsletter

BURGLARIES UP AS ECONOMY SLUMPS

These are some topical items I have recently been informed about by the Belper & District Neighbourhood Watch Support Group

and the police.

Shed Burglaries: There has been an increase in shed burglaries across the division recently.

This is a usual trend after Christmas and the run up to spring.

Please make sure your shed security is adequate for the value of items within.

Always lock it and if you have a wooden shed make sure the lock is secure and can’t be ripped off.

Burglar alarms can be fitted that are cheap and easy.

Consider property marking all your value items with your postcode and house number, using gloss paint is an option because

thieves are after items they can sell on.

Defrosting Cars Warning: Please be careful in the cold weather when cleaning your car windscreen and avoid leaving a car with

the engine running.

There are too many opportunist thieves around who are quite prepared to help themselves to your car and belongings.

Burglary increase: It has been reported that there has been a significant increase in burglaries as a result of the economic crisis.

Everyone is feeling the pinch and that includes burglars and thieves too and they will take everyopportunity they can to gain

advantage.

So, please keep your door and windows locked, use a door chain before you open the door to any strangers and make sure you

do not let anyone in that you do not know.

Lottery Scam: There have again been reports that people are receiving notification from the Spanish lottery that they have won a

large amount of money when they are not even in it.

These are designed to trick the recipient into paying a sum of money for administration before the money can be released, or to

get your bank details and signature.

If you do get one of these you are advised to just discard it.

Seatbelt Reminder: This is a reminder to always use your seatbelt during car journeys regardless of how short. Over 6,000 people

where given a fine in Derbyshire during 2008

Nearly 100 were fines because children were not restrained.

Wearing seat belts is a simple measure that is well proven to greatly reduce the risk of injury in collisions and save lives.

Car key theft: Because it is becoming more difficult to break into cars, many thieves are either breaking into houses to steal car

keys or fishing for them through letterboxes.

Please take care not to leave keys in a place visible to thieves.

Police Non-Emergency telephone number change: From 1st December 2008, the number for contacting Derbyshire police

changed to: 0345 123 3333 (replacing 0845 123 3333). This is to ensure callers are not charged excessively when making a call.

The old number will continue to be operational for about 2 years until people are familiar with the new number and then phased

out. This number is for any policing matter which is not a 999 emergency.