By Police Sergeant Charlie Routley, Harold Wood Safer Neighbourhoods Team
Hello. I am Police Sergeant Charlie Routley of Harold Wood Safer Neighbourhoods Team (SNT) and I am in charge of the local police team who cover Harold Wood ward. I joined this team in October 2007 originally as a Police Constable. In June 2014 I took over as Acting Sergeant and I was promoted officially in June 2015. Currently the team consist of myself, five (5) PC’s and two (2) PCSO’s
During my time on Harold Wood SNT, I have worked closely with several members of the local community, including Cllr Brian Eagling, Cllr Darren Wise and Cllr Alex Donald. I would like to thank them for giving me the opportunity to include this article on their website. It is an ideal chance for me to get messages across to residents and to give you updates about what the team have been doing to help keep Harold Wood a safe place to live and work.
A timer-switch helps deter burglars
The main message I would like to get across this month is the importance of leaving a light on when you go out. Now the clocks have gone back, the nights are drawing in and we see a seasonal rise in the number of burglaries reported between 4pm and 8pm. Houses which are left in darkness are an easy target for opportunist burglars who see it as a sign the property is empty. We do a lot of work in areas we know are targetted at this time of year and some of you may have received a leaflet through your door saying that we have noticed your house was in complete darkness during these hours.
Our advice is that you invest in a timer switch. These can be bought from any supermarket for as little as £5. You can time them to turn a lamp or radio on between 4pm and 8pm, if you are going to be out shopping or not home from work. It may be the difference between you becoming a victim or burglary or not. Most burglars target cash and jewellery. Often the jewellery is of important sentimental value to the victims and irreplaceable.
We offer a service where we can come round and take a look at your current home security, and advise any improvements you may wish to make. Our advice is impartial and again, something as simple as installing trellising or securing a wheelie bin to a fence could be the difference between becoming a victim or burglary or not.
If you would like us to come round, please call us on 02087212509 to arrange this.
For our end of year review into what has been happening in our area, please see my post on the Havering Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) blog:
http://mpshaveringlive.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/harold-wood-ward-end-of-year-review-2015.html?m=1
I hope to make regular contributions to this website and look forward to keeping you updated with what we have been doing in your area.
We also have a monthly newsletter which we send out via email to over 300 residents. If you would like to receive this please email us on haroldwood.snt@met.police.uk to add yourself to our mailing list (we will need your name, address and email address).
If you are on Twitter you can follow us by searching for @MPSHaroldWood
Finally I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a healthy and prosperous 2016!
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