WATCH OUT FOR EACH OTHER WITH NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH

NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH has the biggest voluntary membership of any UK organisation, growing since the introduction of the first Scheme at Mollington, Cheshire in 1982 to the current total of over 165,000 Schemes covering up to 25% of all households. Behind its success lies the simple fact that getting together with neighbours and working with the Police can help solve and deter local Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour and remove the fear and feelings of powerlessness they can engender.

NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH SCHEMES CAN:

• Cut Crime and Disorder and the opportunities for them
• Help reassure those who live in fear of Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour
• Encourage neighbourliness and closer communities

HOW DOES THE NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH SYSTEM WORK?

The system is based on Schemes which vary in size from just a few houses to whole estates: in Wiltshire the average size is around 15 households. Basically, members simply agree to be alert to signs that criminal or ant- social behaviour is or might be taking place in their locality and to warn each other and the Police.

Many Schemes do more, meeting regularly to discuss issues and/or to learn about local crime trends and ways and means of combating them. Local Police (in the form of Neighbourhood Policing Team representatives) and/or NHW Liaison Officers (NHWLOs - Police civilians) will often attend: many produce regular NHW Newsletters on a monthly or quarterly basis which Scheme Co- ordinators circulate to members.

The Scheme Co-ordinators are members who have agreed to act as the contact point for their Scheme and usually determine, by their degree of enthusiasm, how active members are beyond the basic task of watching and reporting. It is hoped - this is all voluntary, remember! - that they would also seek to maintain membership in the face of changes in occupancy within their Scheme.

Wherever possible, NHW Schemes are grouped under Area Co-ordinators - covering on average 25 Schemes each in Swindon and just over 7 elsewhere in Wiltshire - who play a similar role with respect to Schemes as Scheme Co-ordinators do with respect to Scheme members. The Police may liaise through Area or Scheme Co- ordinators, depending on the issues involved and other circumstances, relying on the voluntary NHW network to disseminate information as appropriate.

(Additional Co-ordinator posts have been introduced with the formation of the Wiltshire & Swindon Neighbourhood Watch Association: see more on this below.)

WHAT TO DO NEXT

If you are interested in hearing more about Neighbourhood Watch or would like to set up a local Scheme or volunteer to be a Scheme or Area Co-ordinator where there's a local vacancy please contact your local Neighbourhood Policing Team or Police Station or the Neighbourhood Watch Liaison Officers as follows:

• Wiltshire: 01722 435213
• Swindon: 01793 507864

As such direct dial numbers can change, in case of difficulty go through the switchboard on 08454087000.

THE WILTSHIRE & SWINDON NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH ASSOCIATION

The NHW organisation is in effect a Partnership between the Police and the large network of volunteers in nearly 4000 Schemes across the county. While the system essentially works on a local level as described above, it became clear a few years ago that there were issues being raised about the way the system worked and how it might best respond to change which would be most efficiently addressed on a County-wide basis.

For example, the Police were keen to know what common problems volunteers were experiencing so that they could address these in a co-ordinated rather than piecemeal manner. Some volunteers, on the other hand, were keen to link up with others across the County to share experience and good practice and to play a wider role in assisting the Police to administer the NHW network.

They were also aware, from other Counties, of the possibilities of attracting sponsorship and even charitable status for an appropriately established organisation with such aims and objectives.

As a result the Police and interested volunteers worked to set up a County Neighbourhood Watch Association to meet these objectives.

It was formally constituted as the Wiltshire & Swindon Neighbourhood Watch Association (W&SNHWA) in July 2004 and an initial open meeting, attended by the Chief Constable, was held in March 2005 and inaugural AGM on 31st March 2006 at which the Association's Officers were elected.

Since then a small Committee of volunteers, with Police support, has been working to put the Association on a firm administrative footing; to attract funding (we now have two commercial sponsors: 'Soft Options Ltd' and 'ADT Home Security'); and to understand the overall NHW picture across the County.

Effective communication down to Scheme level remains our biggest challenge and to this end the Association has now established it's own web site at www.kennet-communityweb.com/site/WSNHW- Association.

The formation of the W&SNHWA has also introduced additional volunteer Co- ordinator posts at Section Level (aligned with areas covered by main Police Stations) and District level (aligned with District Council areas).
Such Co-ordinators recruited so far have been working with the NPTs, NHWLOs and the 'traditional' Area and Scheme Co-ordinators to maintain and develop the NHW network in their areas of responsibility and have represented on the Association Committee the views coming from the volunteers at large.

The Police have introduced a new Scheme creation form - now being administered by NPTs - whereby any new Schemes established will be registered with the Association at the outset. Registration also brings with it Public Liability Insurance cover for Scheme members in undertaking their NHW duties.