Message from Avon and Somerset Police:
There has been an increase in burglaries during the hours of darkness across the Avon and Somerset policing area. Please read the information below for help in preventing burglary.
During the winter months the most important thing to prevent burglary is to make your home
look as if it’s occupied. As it gets dark at around 3.30pm when many people are at work, the use of
lights on timer switches is recommended and if you can, also put one on a radio tuned to a talk
station which makes it sound like someone is in, and having a conversation. Fake TV lights are
now available, which gives the impression that someone is watching television, and these can
work really well if you have them in an upstairs bedroom.
Ensure that all doors and windows are closed and properly locked – use a key, don’t just lift the
door handle. Take the keys out of the door when it’s locked and put them somewhere out of sight
and reach, but make sure all the residents know where they are kept in case of emergency.
Sheds, garages and outbuildings are popular targets for burglars, so increase the security to
these whenever possible. Check that the contents are included on your home and contents
insurance.
Restrict access to the rear of your property wherever possible – lock any side gates leading to
the rear – as the back or patio doors are the most popular site of forced entry. Think about growing
some thorny bushes along the garden fencing.
Install security lighting which not only helps you see where you’re going, it also warns you and
your neighbours that someone is in the area.
Consider installing a burglar alarm – they are a real deterrent – but get an approved or
recommended model, as the cheap ones aren’t really that reliable and if the alarm keeps going off
your neighbours will soon lose interest and may ignore a real activation.
More information from Avon and Somerset Police about protecting your home and property is available on their website here. This includes their ‘Ensuring Your Property is Secure‘ page.
At SPC’s ‘Meet Your Community Police Officers‘ event last month, it was raised that sheds and outbuildings are targets for theft locally. As such, residents are recommended to take at look at A&S police’s webpage on ‘Securing your garden and outbuildings‘.
Saltford has many Neighbourhood Watch Schemes (NHW). These have been shown to significantly reduce the chances of crime occurring. To find out more about setting up a NHW in your street visit A&S Police’s Neighbourhood Watch Scheme webpage.
