POLICE NEWS
Hi everyone, the reason I'm so cheery is that I'm just back from my holidays and rarin' to go -yeah, back on holiday that is!
Well, summer time is behind us now for another year and the darker mornings and early afternoons have crept back in. For the Police, this is the time of year when we anticipate thieves and burglars will be on the go, looking out for easy homes to target. I say 'easy homes' because with darkness setting in around 3 -3.30pm, you can bet that there'll be many properties all over our area sitting in complete darkness. The occupiers won't be returning home till teatime, after their work, giving any would be burglar plenty of time to break in and steal.
I assure you that mid-afternoon, at this time of year in particular, is a popular time for break-ins and coupled with them having the advantage of darkness, we expect break-ins to occur. While not wishing to sound too gloomy, there are things you can do to protect
Buy simply fitting timer switches to two or three rooms (please avoid just leaving on the hall light as that is a sure fire indicator to a thief that no-one's at home):
Have security sensor lights fitted. Position and use these lights to your own advantage, one at the front perhaps covering your driveway or path, another at the side(s) of your home and another at the rear.
Lighting is very effective at deterring thieves and this can be accomplished relatively cheaply.
There we go now, it's no big hassle really, is it? And in addition to having taken these measures, it won't half make you feel more comfortable.
As for any other problems in our area at this time, I am glad to say that apart from odd isolated acts of vandalism occurring from time to time, things have been fairly quiet.
The Millside area residents were suffering problems on a regular basis with annoyances from groups of youths hanging around certain spots down there, and like I assured the residents, the area has and is being given as much Police attention as we can manage.
We also have been striving to build up relations with these youths. Instead of the Police being seen as the ones who just keep moving them on, the youths themselves have become accustomed to chatting to us on a good level.
The past two months have seen a considerable drop in the level of complaints reported to us as regards the Millside area, so something's clearly working. (I hope I'm not tempting fate. )
May I mention as a reminder to any complainer that you should ALWAYS report any incident or complaint to the main office at Police Headquarters, Queen Street, as opposed to telephoning the Culter office. HQ is where ALL such incidents are initially recorded and this allows us to keep better tabs on things.
Lastly, even though winter is setting in, I do anticipate taking to my bike. Let's face it, I've been issued with enough Hi- Visibility clothing to make me light up like a Christmas tree, so I will be taking to the roads.
On that point, I would urge other cyclists and parents of cyclists, to give serious consideration to wearing some form of reflective clothing. We've all seen them, cycling on the roads, no lights fitted, no helmet, no reflective gear. Nowadays, the jackets you can get are certainly in keeping with style, but it's the safety aspect that's more important. BE VISIBLE for your sake as well as for other road users.
That's about it folks. I'm sure I've probably forgotten to mention something, but as always, any queries or concerns that you may have, feel free to contact Kevin or me.