Published date: 25 January 2016 |
Published by: Jennie MulcaheyRead more articles by Jennie Mulcahey
DEFIANT residents are fighting back after a spate of burglaries left them feeling vulnerable.
Acton Community Council called a public meeting and invited police to meet with concerned residents.
The meeting was in response to a spate of burglaries in the area over the past year, particularly during the winter.
One resident said he now sleeps with a bat near to his bed and has barbed wire around his home since it was burgled.
Kerry Evans, beat manager for Acton and Borras Park, said police are doing “all they possibly can” to tackle the issue.
Patrols have been stepped up and three new PCSOs are near the completion of their training – but he said residents need to do more to help themselves.
She listened to the fears and concerns of residents before offering advice on security and crime prevention.
She said: “It’s an affluent area and unfortunately that means it’s more likely to be targeted. But we’re here to help each other – that’s the most important thing.
“If we all work together we can prevent things like this from happening.”
PC Evans said there had been 30 burglaries in the past year and the peak time was evenings during winter.
“That’s the time when you’ve got expensive Christmas presents such as laptops sitting in your house, it’s going dark early and you’re still not home from work so all your lights are off,” she said.
“Why not get to know your neighbours, know what cars they drive, know when they’re coming and going, so that you can spot when there’s something unusual. Why not get that community spirit back?”
Several residents spoke about their experiences, including a woman who accidentally left a window open one day.
She said: “They saw a chance and took it. That one time, just once, I left the window open and I was caught out.
“But I’ve looked at the positive side and I’d say we all need to look out for each other. We can all do more.”
Residents toyed with the idea of setting up a neighbourhood watch scheme and took the advice provided by PC Evans.
Speaking afterwards, resident Angela Lawrence, who also lives on the Fairways estate, said: “It was a worthwhile meeting. I was one of the first people to move on to the estate after it was built in 2000 and we’ve never had anything like this before.
“There should be more communication from police and we should communicate with our neighbours more.”
Ms Lawrence was in hospital when intruders tried to enter her home.
“They tried to break into my shed, but couldn’t get in there. They broke the fence to try and get in through the back window, they broke that to try and unlock the door, but they couldn’t do that. Then they threw a brick through the window – but must have been disturbed.
“Being in hospital not knowing what had happened and whether they’d taken anything was an awful feeling, the feeling of someone else being in your house.
“I hope this is the start of something. Neighbours are walking the streets during the day a lot more now to make sure things are okay, as are the PCSOs.
“It’s simple things like padlocks on gates and locks on sheds, like I had, that meant they could’t take anything.”
Cllr Anne Evans said:“This wasn’t an emergency meeting but the start of preventative measures. We’ll hold another in six months and it will carry on.
“I think Kerry is doing a cracking job and her team is doing very well. It was helpful for people to voice their feelings and I think they felt reassured by what Kerry had to say.”
l COMMUNITY leaders have raised concerns about burglaries in Gwersyllt.
Former police inspector Cllr Arfon Jones raised the issue at a Community Council after five break-ins in a month – three in the West ward and two in the North ward.
He asked police at the meeting if there was any pattern to the burglaries.
The officers could not an answer but said they would find out and report back.
see-http://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/157695/residents-in-acton-unite-in-a-bid-to-beat-burglars.aspx
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