Long Buckby & Watford Neighbourhood Watch

Sarah Gray

The crime figures for Long Buckby compare very favourably with other similar sized villages in Northamptonshire. This is due in no small part to the work of the Safer Community Team for this part of the county which is made up of Sergeant Paul Valentine, PCSO Sarah Gray and other team members. This page publishes information about crime in this village and the surrounding area.

Long Buckby has an active Neighbourhood Watch organisation and is run entirely by voluntary members of the community. We inform the community of the details of crime mainly via notices posted throughout the village and offer advice on crime prevention. We have over 60 members, covering approximately 65% of the village, but would welcome new members to cover the rest of the area and help us increase our general vigilance. Crime does not stop — so our vigilance should not stop.

If you are ever witness to any incident, or you have information on any crime, please call Northamptonshire Police on 03000 111222 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              03000 111222      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              03000 111222      end_of_the_skype_highlighting — alternatively, information can be given anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

If you would like advice relating to crime prevention or would like to volunteer as a member of NW, please telephone Norma Warden (Chief Co-ordinator) on 01327 871180 or e-mail her at normawarden@sky.com.

Non Emergency Police contact: Tel. 03000 111222
Crimestoppers: 0800 555111
Police website: http://www.northants.police.uk

Current Notices

3 September 2010: Events in Buckby and Watford

There have been a number of incidents in and around Buckby this past few days, so if you know anything about any of the incidents listed below, please contact the Police.

Sometime between 7.30pm on Wednesday 1st September and 12.00pm on Thursday 2nd September, the door to a garage in The Poplars was forced open and damaged, but nothing was stolen from inside.

Plants were stolen from a garden in Brington Road between 21.30 on 22nd August and 05.30 on 23rd August.

Sometime between 10.00am on Tuesday 31st August and 10.00am on Wednesday 1st September, an unknown person entered a residential property by climbing on the conservatory roof and through the open bathroom window. The property was searched thoroughly and various items were stolen.

Around 7.30pm on Tuesday 31st August, items of property were stolen from a car parked securely in a car park at Watford Gap. The items included a laptop and a Sat Nav, which had been covered with a coat.

Residents are advised to always make sure that their vehicles are left locked even if only leaving them unattended for five minutes. Never leave property on display or ‘hidden’ in the boot and glove box at any time of day, including any indication of a Sat Nav system and activate any alarm systems

26 August 2010: Burning of Play Equipment

Many of you will be aware of the damage done to the newly erected play equipment on the recreation field in Station Road. Sometime between 3.00 and 3.30 pm on Wednesday 18th August the equipment was set alight and although fire crews attended and the fire was put out, unfortunately the equipment was completely ruined. If you were in the area and saw anything suspicious at about that time, please pass the information on to the Police on 03000 111222 or via Crimestoppers.

26 August 2010: Theft of Piping

The Police have reported a break in to a house in West Haddon between Tuesday, 10th August and Friday, 20th August, when entry was gained by forcing open the front door. A considerable amount of damage was caused to the inside of the property, including radiators and bathroom suites being ripped away from the walls and a large amount of copper piping and wiring was stolen from the property.

26 August 2010: Crimestoppers

The police rely on people coming forward with information about crime and criminals, but know that for a variety of reasons, not everyone is comfortable with calling the police. Crimestoppers offers people a way of passing on information without fear of being identified. It is not part of the police service and the police never find out who has supplied the information – they simply take action on any crime that is identified. Calls to 0800 555111 will always be personally answered and callers remain anonymous and calls are not traced back. If you have any information about a crime or criminals in our community, then please pass the information on. Every call is valuable, but if your information leads to an arrest and charge, it could bring you a cash reward. Some specific things to look out for include people who are selling cheap goods, drug activity, homes that appear empty, curtains drawn during the day time, people frequently coming and going from a property, or neighbours keeping strange hours.

16 August 2010: Incidents around Long Buckby

There have been a few incidents and crimes over the past couple of weeks. Two vehicles have sustained criminal damage – one in High Street overnight on 5/6 August and the other overnight between 3/4 August. A vehicle was set on fire in Grasscroft late on 8 August. Someone stole hanging baskets from Harbidges Lane late on 7 August. If you have any information about any of these incidents, please contact the Police with the details on 03000 111222

16 August 2010: Burglaries & SmartWater

There have been two burglaries in nearby villages over the past week or so. Generally this part of the county is considered a low crime area, but no crime would be better. So please consider using “SmartWater” on your property if you have not already done so. This property marking system is a brilliant crime deterrent. Generally it has been shown that criminals tend to stay clear of properties using this product. It is easily available through your Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator at cost price (ring Norma Warden on 01327 871180 for further information).

16 August 2010: Increased Police Presence

The Police are continuing their operation to combat the anti social behaviour that has in the past occurred during the school holidays. This means there are more foot patrols and an increased police presence in and around Long Buckby. The Police aim to dramatically reduce noise, underage drinking and anti social behaviour, particularly around the Market Place area of the village.

16 August 2010: Police Surgery

The next Police Surgery is due to take place at Long Buckby Library on Friday, 20 August between 4.00 and 5.00 pm.

16 August 2010: Holiday Tips

With the holiday season in full swing, remember you might be on holiday, but the thieves won’t be. You can help make your home more secure whilst you are away by:

• Cancelling any milk or newspaper deliveries
• Avoid discussing holiday plans where strangers may hear details of your absence from home
• Make your home look like someone is living in it. Don’t close your curtains in daytime and use automatic timer-switches to turn your lights on when it goes dark
• Do not put your home address on your luggage when you are travelling to your holiday destination
• Finally, make sure that you’ve locked all outside doors and windows & set alarms.

3 August 2010: Long Buckby Incidents

There have been a number of crimes in the village over the past fortnight as follows:-

Thefts

Brington Road 12/13 July – theft of tree/plant

Parkfield Road 15 July – theft of play equipment

Criminal damage

Church street 17 July – damage to building

Cooks Way – damage to fencing

Theft from vehicles

Grasscroft 25/26 July

Knutsford Lane 25/26 July

South Close 25/26 July

The Police are targeting anti-social behaviour throughout the summer holidays with more foot patrols and Police presence in and around Long Buckby. The aim is to dramatically reduce noise, underage drinking as well as other anti-social behaviour.

28 July 2010: Thefts from Parked Cars

Two incidents have happened in the village where thieves stole property from parked cars. Between 10.30 pm on Sunday 25 July and 9.40 am on Monday 26 July, an insecure vehicle, parked on the roadside in South Close was broken into and property stolen from inside. Between 3.00 pm on Sunday 25 July and 8.00 am on Monday 26 July, a vehicle parked securely on the roadside in Knutsford Lane was broken into and a sat nav stolen from inside.

Residents are advised always to make sure that their vehicles are left locked, even if only leaving them unattended for five minutes and activate any alarm systems. Never leave property on display or “hidden” in the boot and glove box at any time of day, including any indication of a sat nav system.

If you have any information in relation to either of these incidents please report it to the Police on 03000 111222.

28 July 2010: High Powered Cold Calling

There has been an increase in the number of people receiving unsolicited telephone calls from companies offering the installation of security systems. Initial contact is made by telephone cold calling residents to arrange appointments. Whilst the alarms may be free or available at a nominal cost, the on-going maintenance costs are high and there is a cancellation fee.

The Police advice is that you do not purchase systems from companies cold calling, either on the telephone or at your door. If you are considering investing in an alarm system, we recommend that obtain quotes from at least 3 security companies who are subject to independent inspection by a recognised body, either NSI (The National Security Inspectorate) or SSAIB (Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board).

If anyone is experiencing or has been affected by “cold call” telephone calls from companies arranging visits promoting the sale of security alarms, please ring Consumer Direct on 08454 040506 or Northamptonshire Trading Standards on 01604 707900. Remember, “If you’re not sure, DON’T open the door”.

14 July 2010: Criminal Damage in Long Buckby

Over the past couple of weeks there have been a number of incidents of criminal damage around the streets of Long Buckby. Damage was done to a vehicle parked in Ryehill Close overnight on 6/7 July and to another parked in Cooks Way overnight 30 June/1 July. Other vehicles were damaged in Brington Road overnight 26/28 June – the Police would like to hear from you if you saw or heard anything suspicious on these occasions. Thefts from vehicles have taken place overnight on 6/7 July to a vehicle parked in the Nuns Lane area (an I-pod and sat nav. unit were removed from the glove-box of this vehicle) and property stolen from another vehicle parked in Church Street on the same night.

Residents are advised always to make sure that their vehicles are left locked even if only leaving them unattended for five minutes. Never leave property on display or “hidden” in the boot and glove box at any time of day, including any indication of a sat. nav. system and on leaving your vehicle, activate any alarm systems. It also helps the Police if a security marking tool, such as SmartWater is used on property – it acts as a deterrent and also helps officers to return your property to you should it be stolen.

14 July 2010: Recreation Field and Mill Park – Anti-social behaviour and criminal damage

The Mill Park Reserve has been the target for criminal damage sometime between 25-27 June. Anti social behaviour is becoming a problem too on the recreation area where youths are using and abusing the field. If you spot anyone who is not using these areas as they should be, please ring the Police and give details – particularly of the appearance of the youths involved, so the Police can identify the culprits.

14 July 2010: Watch your Catalytic Converter

The Police have warned about the recent spate of thefts of catalytic converters from vehicles parked in shopping areas around Rugby. This can happen in a very short space of time. So please, if you see anyone looking like they are working on or repairing a vehicle in this sort of situation, DO NOT challenge them, but when safe to do so, call the Police with the details.

14 July 2010: Speeders Beware!

If you are one of those drivers who speed through our village, take care, because there have been speed enforcement patrols in the village that have caught some culprits and more speed patrols are planned in the near future.

23 June 2010: Long Buckby Incidents

Were you around the Cooks Terrace area overnight on 16-17 June? A vehicle was stolen and the Police would like to know the detail if you did you saw or heard anything suspicious. There was criminal damage done to a vehicle in Pittams Close overnight on 19-20 June. The same night there was a theft from the Community Centre.

23 June 2010: Telephone Scams

The Police are warning of two telephone scams. Bogus phone calls have been made from people claiming to be from Northants. County Council. and offering loft and wall cavity insulation. In some cases, residents who complained, said the caller became rude and aggressive during the conversation. A spokesperson for Northamptonshire County Council said the authority did not offer a loft and wall cavity insulation service. She stressed these types of calls would not be from council staff and advised residents not to give out personal information or act on offers from those or other similar callers.

The Police have also passed on information from Derbyshire about a current scam when a person claiming to be a ‘representative’ of BT is calling residents, saying they will be disconnected for non-payment of bills unless payment is made immediately with a credit or debit card. Refusal then causes a ‘fake’ disconnection. The scammers stay on the line but use the mute button, meaning there is no dialling tone and calls out cannot be made – and it seems as if the line has been cut off. (This is only temporary.) If you receive this kind of call DO NOT PASS ANY CREDIT/DEBIT CARD DETAILS or indeed any type of information to the caller.

23 June 2010: Bogus Clothing Collection

The Police have passed on information about charity leaflets that have been distributed in the Daventry and Northampton areas suggesting they are collecting for a company calling themselves SOS Clothes Ltd. on behalf of Tree of Hope Children’s Charity. However this collection is not licensed and SOS Clothes have stated that they have not delivered any leaflets and will not be collecting from the area next week. They believe this must be a bogus company using their leaflets. Please contact the Police if you see anyone collecting clothing on behalf of SOS Clothes Ltd. Please pass this information on to family friends and neighbours, especially the elderly and vulnerable.

12 June 2010: Cat Flap Crime

The Police have forwarded information of a car key crime in Lilbourne overnight on 8/9 June when a house was broken into by criminals who got into the back garden through an unlocked gate.They then reached through the cat flap, using a washing line prop found in the garden, and unhooked house keys left on the draining board.They used the keys to open the door to the kitchen and whilst inside the house, took a wallet and removed car keys that had been left on a hook.The car was then driven away from the driveway using the stolen car keys.If criminals are really intent on getting into a property, they will usually find a way, but it is made much easier for them to use house keys, so it is always a good idea to keep your keys well out of sight and away from open windows or cat flaps!

12 June 2010: Don’t Let Criminals Drive your Vehicle Away

On Wednesday 2 June a car owner left his vehicle and trailer unattended for a short while with the keys in the ignition and his dogs inside.On his return he found the Land Rover Discovery, trailer and dogs were missing.The dogs and trailer have since been recovered, but the Land Rover is still missing. Again, crime is so much easier for the opportunist criminal when keys are left in the vehicle.

28 May 2010: Warning to Horse Owners

Horse owners please be on the lookout for unusual plaiting of tails and manes or painted cross type markings on the horse’s coat.This may mean that the horse has been singled out for a future theft. Should you notice anything unusual about your horse please call the Police.

28 May 2010: Doorstep Sales Warning

Please warn any elderly neighbours or family members not to agree to doorstep sales.An old lady in Barby was approached by men in a white type van asking if she would like her garden tidied for £68.When the lady agreed, she was then asked for £628, not £68.Trading Standards are now involved.