Mid Sussex security and crime prevention news for the community

Here is the latest message to the community (13th Jan) from Jon Hull, Chief Inspector for Mid Sussex District.  It is intended to keep the local community informed and updated about key issues and developments in the area and can be viewed or downloaded opposite >>>

View/download Community Message 62 (9KB)
Downloading and Printing info here.
Previous message No 61 (Mar, 10KB)

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the concept of the Neighbourhood Panel, they have been developed in the Mid Sussex area to assist the Neighbourhood Policing Teams with setting priorities for us to work on.

August 2009 saw the first meeting of the new Hassocks, Keymer and Clayton Neighbourhood Panel and follow-on meeting have been held every 10 weeks since.

The meetings are informally chaired by myself, PCSO Emma Collett with attendance by main coordinator Bruce Burgess.

At the January meeting we set the following priorities:

Priority 1: details awaited
Action:

Priority 2: details awaited
Action:

We have set various actions for ourselves relating to these and previous topics and you will see us in the village carrying these out.  You can see the priorities in more detail here.

As one of the original priorities was to highlight the profile of the panel, we are always looking for more volunteers to join us.  We will welcome all new members of all ages but are keen to see the Hassocks Traders represented and those attending the village schools (teachers/parents or children) and youth organisations.

Our next meeting is date to be advised at the Council Chambers, Parish Centre in Adastra Park.  Future meeting dates will be advised here.

Follow-on meetings are held about every ten weeks to give an opportunity to provide feedback and updates on progress and to review the priorities.

If you are interested in joining us, please PCSO Emma Collett with your contact details or call on 0845 60 70 999 ext 27411.

Dates for forthcoming Police Surgeries >>>

All are held at the Hassocks Parish Council Offices in Adastra Park or at South Downs Nurseries café (marked SDN) where free tea and coffee is available for those who wish to meet with me there.  Please come along if you have any problems or questions that the police may be able to help with.

16th February: 2.00 - 3.00pm
13th March: 10.00 - 11.00am
12th April: 2.00 - 3.00pm
15th May: 10.00 - 11.00am
14th June: 2.00 - 3.00pm

At the recent AGM of the Sussex Neighbourhood Watch Federation (SNWF), newly appointed Chairman John Wright paid tribute to two retiring members, Brenda Whitmell and Robin Matthews and presented them both with Certificates of Achievement.

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 the Neighbourhood & Home Watch Network, the national umbrella organisation for Neighbourhood Watch... ...similarly Robin has been a stalwart of Neighbourhood Watch in Sussex, and we wish them both a very long and happy retirement."

Apart from John becoming the new Chairman, other new key appointments to the Federation include Derek Pratt as Deputy Chairman, three Vice Chairmen: John Holman, representing West Sussex (also the new Treasurer); Mike Hewens (East Sussex), and Peter Brookshaw (Brighton & Hove).  Ann Goodridge is the new Secretary and Robin Hargraves is Sales Officer.

The Sussex Neighbourhood Watch Federation was set-up in 1995 with Sussex Police support.  Its functions are to act as a forum, coordinate resources, provide help to members and to share good practice.  It also seeks to raise Neighbourhood Watch profile and represents the views of members to the South East Regional Forum and Neighbourhood & Home Watch Network (NHWN).

John Wright paying tribute to Brenda Whitmell and Robin Matthews
at the Sussex Neighbourhood Watch Federation AGM.

In partnership with NHWN, a new BTEC Qualification for Community Advocates has been devised.  Developed as part of the National Neighbourhood Watch Academy, the course is designed to address the skills needed for volunteers within community organisations.

Briefly, the course encompasses: effective communication skills and building effective working relationships with partner organisations such as public bodies and community organisations; how to influence decisions; taking positive social action; determine the concerns and priorities of communities and embracing new ways of communicating including blogging, tweeting, etc.

The accredited course leads to a BTEC Level 3 and consists of 30 hours of guided learning.  There are no entry requirements.

The qualification is expected to attract more people to become involved with Neighbourhood Watch and is a valuable resource for members keen to develop their personal skills.

See the full course content, including learning outcomes, qualification structure and how to enrol.

The next open programme event [click to book online] is to be advised.  The qualification can also be delivered 'in-house' to local watches and organisations.

Unfortunately there's no sponsorship available, or plans to run courses locally, from local public bodies owing to the current financial climate.

There have recently been some significant developments and initiatives launched by our national body, NHWN (Neighbourhood and Home Watch Network).  NHWN is the only national NHW movement officially recognised and supported by the Home Office.

The organisation, now a Private Limited Company, launched their new website and branding (logo above) in early April.  Now called OurWatch, the new site should help move Neighbourhood and Home Watch into the digital age through the use of social media and the development of a number of highly useful facilities for local NHW schemes.  Available now, these are supported by Angela Browning, the Home Office Minister for Crime Prevention and the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO).  An accredited BTEC Qualification for Community Advocates to skills train a new generation of volunteers has been developed and the slogan 'tweeting not twitching' has been coined to reinforce the movement's modern image.

Scheme coordinators can register and pin their scheme on a postcode searchable map, allowing anyone interested in joining a scheme to locate those in their area, find out more and make an enquiry.  Scheme coordinators can also blog information, news and promote local events for all to see whether a member or not.

'Your local area' map shows registered schemes

Secure messages can be sent using the new National Communication System (NCS) allowing NHW members at all levels access to a modern, secure web-based communication system.  This system is also made available for use by police forces to facilitate communication to and from Neighbourhood Watch.

NHWN website home page

Additionally, the resource centre provides toolkits to assist with running a Neighbourhood Watch group and allows publicity materials such as letters, posters, flyers and newsletters to be custom created from templates and downloaded.  A campaign pack provides assistance to allow schemes to run their own promotional efforts, including a powerful PowerPoint presentation for group promotion at meetings.  The police crime mapping facility is also carried on the site, as are local police contacts.

With the push towards social media, needless to say a Twitter feed and Facebook page is provided; a YouTube channel and mobile device apps will undoubtedly follow in the future.

A national marketing and media campaign took place during Neighbourhood Watch Week 18-26th June including an official website launch on 21st June.  The website been short listed in the Nominet internet awards 2011 for its groundbreaking work.

Comments...

Mike Potter, Hassocks NHW website:
"These new initiatives should help raise the profile of Neighbourhood Watch in the UK, attract a new generation of motivated volunteers and address the stagnation and decline of the movement prevalent in many areas."

Mark Rendall, Sussex Police NHW manager:
"Any additional websites that relay information are a great asset to the community, NHW and the fight against crime."

Sussex Police launched an online crime mapping facility in early February that details crimes to street level.  Users can type in their town or postcode and zoom in / drag on a map to their street and view reported crime of the following types: burglary, anti-social behaviour, robbery, vehicle crime, violent crime and other crime.

Chief Constable Martin Richards said: "Sussex Police has joined-up with all other police forces in England and Wales to launch a new tool that will help communities to better understand what's happening on their streets.  By making this information available, we aim to raise awareness of what we're doing to tackle crime and disorder and how local people can support their local police.  This new technology will allow us to provide more relevant information to the community.  In addition to information about crime and anti-social behaviour, we hope to have updates on the activities and actions of Neighbourhood Policing officers and news stories from their areas."

Click to access the UK Crime map site.

The facility, developed by the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) on behalf of the Home Office, also has contact details and feedback channels for local policing teams, their priorities, crime prevention advice and information about forthcoming police events.