Neighbourhood Watch
Neighbourhood Watch
Our Watch, a national organisation supported by the Home Office, explains the benefits of Neighbourhood Watch with the following statement:
"People join Neighbourhood Watch to make the areas where they live safe, friendly and pleasant places to be - and it works.
The old stereotype of the Neighbourhood Watch curtain twitcher is wrong for one very simple reason: it implies fear. Neighbourhood Watch is about the opposite: making sure that no one has to feel afraid, vulnerable or isolated in the place where they live. It's about people looking out for each other, crossing barriers of age, race and class to create real communities that benefit everyone.
To explode another myth, Neighbourhood Watch groups are owned and run by the people of their communities, not the police. So the approach you take is entirely up to you. The most impressive Neighbourhood Watch achievements result from members looking closely at the needs of their communities and meeting them with innovative and creative thinking."
A link to the National Organisation which shares practice from around the UK, can be found at the bottom of every page on the Sussex Police website, in the form of the NHW logo.
Links to recognised Sussex based Associations including the umbrella Association, the Sussex NHW Federation can be found in the 'Useful Links' section alongside this text.
How does Neighbourhood Watch work?
Residents in a street simply decide to set up a scheme. All it takes is one person to pick up the phone and call Sussex Police on 101 for more information. Your local Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) or Neighbourhood Policing Team will be pleased to explain the easy set up process, which is completely free of charge.
What is involved?
Once the scheme is in operation, residents go about their normal lives using their eyes and ears, talk to each other and liaise with their Neighbourhood Police contacts. You will probably be surprised how friendly everybody becomes, and how quickly you can spot strangers and unusual activity. Equally, your neighbours will be keeping an eye open for trouble when you're away from home. Very little effort is needed.
NHW in Sussex
In Sussex, Neighbourhood Watch has the following main objectives:
- To reduce crime - By improving security, increasing vigilance, creating, and maintaining a caring community, and reducing opportunities for crime by increasing crime prevention awareness.
- To assist the Police in detecting crime - By promoting effective communication and the prompt reporting of suspicious and criminal activity.
- To reduce the fear of crime - By providing accurate information about risks, and by promoting a sense of security and community spirit, particularly amongst the more vulnerable.
- To improve police/community liaison - By providing effective means to notify Co-ordinators of local crime trends, and by members advising the police of incidents when they occur.
- To increase community safety - By providing safety information from other Partnership bodies such as Trading Standards and the Fire & Rescue Service.
Additional benefits
Some Insurance Companies offer reductions in premiums for:
- Additional window locks
- Alarms
- Neighbourhood Watch Membership
Contact your insurance company and see if you are eligible as a member of Neighbourhood Watch for any discounts.
NHW and Sussex Police partnership
It is Important that issues are addressed locally to find local solutions. The working partnership between Sussex Police and NHW offers the opportunity for this to happen at grass root levels. The Neighbourhood Policing teams regularly attend meetings in communities and are always approachable about neighbourhood concerns.
In addition to meetings, if you are a Coordinator for Neighbourhood Watch, and have electronic mail you will also receive local crime messages from your Neighbourhood Policing Team.
Sussex Neighbourhood Watch Federation moves ahead
Brenda Whitmell and Robin Matthews, the Chair and Vice Chairman/Treasurer respectively of Sussex Neighbourhood Watch Federation, retired from the Federation at the recent Annual General Meeting, after many years of long and loyal service.
The newly appointed Chairman is John Wright, Chairman of Crawley Neighbourhood Watch, and the Deputy Chairman is Derek Pratt, the Vice Chairman of Crawley Neighbourhood Watch and also Chairman of the Neighbourhood Watch North Sussex Search Team. Crawley Neighbourhood Watch is widely respected as being one of the most pro-active Neighbourhood Watch town schemes in Sussex.
Paying tribute at the AGM John said: "Brenda has been the Chairman of the Sussex Neighbourhood Watch Federation for over 10 years, and during that time she has also served on the Neighbourhood Watch South East Regional Forum, and represented the interests of the South East at Neighbourhood & Home Watch Network (NHWN), the national umbrella organisation for Neighbourhood Watch. NHWN represents all Neighbourhood Watch and Home Watch members across England and Wales. It is the body that engages with the Home Office and other partners at the strategic level. Similarly Robin has been a stalwart of Neighbourhood Watch in Sussex, and we wish them both a very long and happy retirement."
Three Vice Chairmen were also appointed; John Holman represents West Sussex and also becomes the new Treasurer, Mike Hewens represents East Sussex, and Peter Brookshaw represents Brighton & Hove. Other key appointments were Ann Goodridge as Secretary and Robin Hargraves as Sales Officer.
The Sussex Neighbourhood Watch Federation, set up in 1995 with the full support of Sussex Police, acts as a forum, co-ordinates resources, provides help to its members and helps to share good practice across the County, as well as seeking to raise the profile of Neighbourhood Watch. It also represents the views of our members to the South East Regional Forum, and where necessary to National Neighbourhood Watch.
The main purposes of Neighbourhood Watch are to promote good
citizenship and greater public awareness through Neighbourhood
Watch groups, increase public participation in the prevention and
detection of crime, reduce the fear of crime, improve
police/community liaison and increase community safety.
Neighbourhood Watch is about making sure that no one has to feel
afraid, vulnerable or isolated in the place where they live. It's
about people looking out for each other, crossing barriers of age,
race and class to create real communities that benefit
everyone.
Neighbourhood Watch is a "grass roots" organisation, run by its
members for its members and is one of the UK's largest voluntary
organisations. Anybody can join a Neighbourhood Watch scheme.
Usually residents in a neighbourhood who support the aims and
objectives of Neighbourhood Watch agree amongst each other that
they will come together and form a local scheme, with the help and
support of Sussex Police. This might be one or two streets in a
town, or even part of a street, or it could be an entire village.
Sussex Police maintains a register of all recognised schemes, and
checks the suitability of the local co-ordinator to hold that
position.