What is Neighbourhood Watch?
Neighbourhood Watch in Cleveland is a partnership.
It involves the Police, Community Safety Departments of Local Authorities, voluntary organisations and residents in communities who want to make their neighbourhoods better places to live.
Neighbourhood Watch exists to:
- Cut crime and reduce the opportunities for crime and anti-social behaviour
- Provide reassurance to residents and reduce the fear of crime and anti-social behaviour
- Encourage neighbourliness and closer communities
- Improve the quality of life for local residents
Watch schemes can take many forms to meet a community's specific needs;
- Business Watch
- Farm Watch
- Shop Watch
- Faith Watch
- Forecourt Watch
- School Watch
- Allotment Watch
How is this achieved?
- By improving security, increasing vigilance, creating and maintaining a caring community and reducing opportunities for crime by increasing crime prevention awareness.
- By providing accurate information to Watch scheme members about risks and by promoting a sense of security and community spirit, particularly amongst the more vulnerable members of the community.
- Through effective communication links between Watch scheme members and the Police.
- By ensuring prompt reporting of suspicious and criminal activity.
- By providing effective communications through the Neighbourhood Watch Ringmaster system, which warns of local crime trends which can be disseminated to scheme members, and by members informing the police of incidents when they occur.
How does it work?
It must be recognised that the scheme is a community initiative, which is supported by the Police, not run by them, so success depends on what the members make of it.
It is essential to establish close links with your local Police, both the Neighbourhood Watch Liaison Officer and the Community Policing Team. The Police can provide up to date information on crime trends as well as expert advice. Watch scheme members can contribute valuable information about the neighbourhood, which combined with the Police data, provides a powerful basis for action against crime and disorder.
The Police can't deal with the problems and issues arising from crime and anti-social behaviour alone; they need the help of the whole community. Neighbourhood Watch provides a way for local people to play an important part in addressing this balance and making their communities safer.
How much does it cost?
Crime prevention advice and community safety information is provided free of charge.
What are the benefits?
- Opportunities to bring communities together, fostering community spirit
- An increased awareness of local crime issues and how to tackle them
- Real contributions to improving your area and quality of life
- Greater vigilance
- Increase crime prevention awareness, reducing the opportunities for crime.
- Better communication between residents, the Police and other agencies at a local level.
Get Involved
If you are interested in starting a new Neighbourhood Watch scheme in your area or joining an existing scheme or simply want to know more about Neighbourhood Watch then contact Cleveland Police on 01642 326 326 and ask for the Neighbourhood Watch Liaison Officer for your area.
They will check to see if a scheme already exists in your neighbourhood. If not, they will give information on how to start a scheme.
Speak to your neighbours and identify who else in your locality is interested.
An initial meeting can be arranged to start the scheme. if you wish. The meeting is generally held at a local venue and supported by the Neighbourhood Watch Liaison Officer and the local Police Officer or PCSO.
Each community develops their scheme to meet their own needs. Ideally, a Co-ordinator would be appointed who would act as a focal point for contact between the Watch scheme, the Police and other agencies.
It is not the Co-ordinator's role to report crime on behalf of their neighbours but to facilitate the flow of information between Watch scheme members, the Police and partner agencies.
To find out what is happening nationally or access a range of NHW resources visit http://www.ourwatch.org.uk/
You can contact the Neighbourhood Watch Liaison Officer for your area directly by using the telephone numbers or email addresses below:
Cleveland Police Headquarters - 01642 326326
Hartlepool - 01642 302562- nhw.hartlepool@cleveland.pnn.police.uk
Stockton - 01642 302341 - nhw.stockton@cleveland.pnn.police.uk
Middlesbrough - 01642 303199 - nhw.middlesbrough@cleveland.pnn.police.uk
Redcar and Cleveland - 01642 302629 - nhw.langbaurgh@cleveland.pnn.police.uk
