Doddington Neighbourhood Watch Bulletin no 2 for 2017. 10 February 2017.
Dear Neighbours
There was a disturbing incident at The George in Newnham on 17 January when a couple of young men were disturbed climbing on the kitchen roof, thought to be after lead. Fortunately they were spotted (though not caught) and a message sent to the Chequers, but there was evidence that they may have investigated neighbouring properties.
Subsequently a notice was posted on the Doddington Facebook page by Sandra Parker. This is an excellent forum for instant news and updates. Even though I don't have a Facebook account I can still read what is going on, although I have to click 'not now' in the pop up box when asked to sign up.
I would have sent you all an alert but at that point my ancient stuffed iPad almost gave up the ghost and kept crashing. I'm now the proud owner of a new one so back in action, but you may recall in my last posting there had been a cold caller purporting to be an ex soldier. Since then I have learned that all such cold calling is banned, so please don't hesitate to turn unwanted visitors away firmly (though I recognise this can be awkward) and inform 101 of the incident and ask to be 'tagged' as a member of Neighbourhood Watch.
Today I had a notification from Erin, the local NHW Coordinator about further fraudulent callers:
Please be aware of doorstep callers posing as workers from Dyno-Rod claiming that local work has been carried out and that they need to check your water pressure. This is false and an attempt to access vulnerable people's property.
Please ensure that you pass on this message especially to the vulnerable, as this occurred only yesterday in the Ashford area.
Always ask for a callers ID and if in doubt call their office prior to admitting them to your home, or use a nominated neighbour scheme.
I still have a few NHW booklets with information and advice, and with them is a 'no cold calling' sticker. It is rather large, but has useful information on the back as well. Just email or text my mobile if you would like one. There are secret marker pens too for identifying property.
And now for something slightly different. Erin sent an example of how local vigilance can help with serious problems which is recorded in a document below, and relates to modern slavery.
Best wishes to you all for February.