What is Neighbourhood Policing?

Neighbourhood policing is the police services commitment to improving your quality of life by working together with partners, targeting the issues that you identify as those that matter. Because this will be achieved by the police in your area working together with partners you may know it locally by a different name such as Neighbourhood Management or Safer Neighbourhoods.

Neighbourhood Policing is based on local priorities identified by local people as the issues that need to be dealt with in their area and Police and partners will work together to tackle them. It is vital that local people work with them to improve the quality of life in their area.

This is your opportunity to influence the service provided by police and partners in your area.

Each police force is working with partners and community members to define these neighbourhoods which may vary from force to force. A neighbourhood is usually a geographic area which is of a size that best serves the needs of the local communities reflecting the people that live within it.

A neighbourhood team can be made up of police officers, police community support officers, community wardens, special constables, volunteers and partners, all working together in partnership.

Details of your neighbourhood officers and how to contact them are available from your local force, contact your local police station, visit your force website available through www.police.uk or find out what’s going on in your region by using the link on the right hand side of this page.

Neighbourhood Policing means you will know who your neighbourhood officer is, how to contact them and what they are doing to address your local crime and disorder priorities.

Neighbourhood teams will work closely with residents to improve your neighbourhood. The police will continue to provide emergency and 24 hour response; but the main focus of neighbourhood policing teams will be dealing with your problems and priorities.
 

New Single Non-Emergency Phone Number 101

Hampshire has become one of 5 areas to be the guinea pigs for a new single non=emergency number (SNEN) for the public to get advice and action on community safety and anti-social behaviour.

The number to dial is 101 and has been set up to give the public direct access to the service they want.  Calls will cost 10 pence each time from any phone.

Around 70 per cent of 999 calls are not emergencies.  The Single Non-Emergency Number service will operate around the clock and put callers directly in touch with specially trained operators for information and advice on non-emergency matters.

It will cover:

The Law on Self Defence

The article below has been taken from the Neighbourhood Watch web site:

August 2005  -   It is fortunately a rare event for someone to be burgled. And it is rarer still that someone confronts a burglar. Statistics show that burglary has decreased steadily since the late 1990s. And the decline is continuing. It is also extremely unlikely that a burglar will be armed and violent. Statistics show that a burglar carries a weapon in about 1% of cases. But people still ask the question: if I am confronted by a burglar what can I do?

Most burglars will not want a confrontation. They will not want to harm you. So your first thought should be to call the police if that is possible. They are there to protect you.

Under the law you are entitled to use reasonable force to protect yourself, another person or your property, prevent crime or help to legally arrest a criminal.

The force that it is reasonable to use in any situation will depend on the circumstances and the threat you are facing. When you are threatened and frightened you are not expected to judge precisely the measure of defensive force you need to use. A claim of self-defence is allowed if you have done no more than you instinctively believe is necessary to protect yourself from attack (or to protect others or property).

The law does not allow you to retaliate against a criminal. Punishing criminals is a matter for the police and the courts, and you must not take the law into your own hands by trying to punish an offender yourself.

Injuring a criminal while defending yourself or your property will not necessarily mean you will face criminal charges. The law is on your side. But the police may have to investigate the incident and may ask you for a statement. They need to find out what happened, and you should help them as much as you can.

The CPS and Association of Chief Police Officers have issued a short leaflet called ‘Householders and the use of force against intruders’. It explains the law in plain language. It deals with people’s main concerns and the questions they most often ask, such as ‘Does the law protect me?’, ‘What is ‘reasonable force’? ’and ‘How will the police and CPS treat me?

To find out more about Neighbourhood Watch the National Neighbourhood Watch Association web site at http://www.neighbourhoodwatch.net

Identity Fraud

The article below has been taken from the Neighbourhood Watch web site:

identity fraud is the UK ’s fasted growing type of fraud. There is one case of identity theft committed every four minutes and it is costing UK consumers more than £1.3 billion each year. Fraudsters are able to steal an identity by simply getting hold of personal details – from documents such as bank statements, credit card receipts and bills. A common way of gaining this information is through ‘bin raiding’ – the simple act of delving through household waste to find personal documents.

How can I avoid becoming a victim?