| STRATFORD DISTRICT NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH ASSOCIATION Parish Plans - Summary of first full meeting of the new SDNW meeting from David Morgan, Parish Plans Manager & Rural Outreach - 19/01/09 Meeting held at Stratford Police Station on Thursday 15th January 2009. This is my summary of this meeting, hopefully of use to the Parishes who have identified a lessening of support for NW in their Parish Plans. It is not a set of full minutes for the meeting, which will follow in due course, minutes which will reflect the course of all discussions and decisions made. My observations are directed towards areas which can help a Parish ‘reinvigorate' NW. Highlighted in bold are points from the meeting which are of note to any Parish, whether NW is successful or not. DM From the Parish Plan ‘holders', the following Parish were in attendance - Henley, Long Compton area NW, Snitterfield and Studley 1) The Meeting opened with addresses by Chief Inspector Ian Whiting and then Chief Superintendent Neil Brunton - C/S Brunton included the following comments - ‘We are responsible for the whole county, for the response across all the Districts and Boroughs - each District & Borough is different - we need as much help as possible - you are our eyes and ears - we are totally committed to improving service across the District - its an open book in term of relationship' 2) Your new Chairman, Jim Bacon, then addressed the meeting (Note: Jim is a long time Parish Councillor for Studley - the present Chairman of their PC, whose remit includes running NW in the village) In the past few years, there has been a change in Studley - we feel more and more alone - it seemed NW was put to one side and that PACT had taken over - now PACT seems to have been put to one side and Community Forums have taken over from them.' 3) General Business - The SDNW needs a Minutes Secretary. The structure of NW in the region was then introduced. Now with a fully formed SDNW Association, there are places on the CDRP and Warwickshire NW Forums, with 3 reps from SNDW invited to four meetings a year. Would any Parish NW have a representative who would enjoy being Minutes Secretary for the new Association (Note: This is minutes collation only)? For particularly any successful NW in a Parish, would you like to be one of these representatives on the regional committees? For either position please contact Jim Bacon at your earliest convenience 4) NW Funding in a Parish and how to make NW ‘work' The SDNW Association has £6K of funding ring fenced for its activities, which can include some support for individual NW associations - plans for these funds will be developed over the coming year a) NWA in a Parish are highly unlikely to be asked to subscribe to the SDNWA b) Can try their Parish Council for funds to support activities in a Village - this has usually been a very positive relationship using small amounts of funding c) Can use Parish Magazines, Newsletters and Parish web sites to provide information on what's going on and how to be involved d) Become involved with the community alerts schemes, which have developed significantly in the past few years. For a Parish where ‘reinvigoration' of NW is a parish plan issue, why not join the alerts scheme to see how informative and effective it could be in your Parish? 5) What the Alerts Scheme involves Direct contact with some 4500 NW representatives, and some 5000 Businesses Community Alerts - a 4 Stage process The Warwickshire Watch Scheme The CAPS* messaging system The Safer Neighbourhoods Team *Note: The CAPS messaging system could be very useful in targeting specific areas, notably a Parish, with minimal (negligible) costs as its e-mail based 6) General Comments from the meeting You pay Council tax so you expect to see a Policeman - it prevents a ‘fear' of crime - if a Policeman in a Panda drives through a village, if they get stop their car, get out and walk around, it is a re-assurance and a visible deterrent Be aware and take care - when crime levels go down (as they have done in many areas) people become complacent Un-removable number plates - only one (non-web) supplier in KwikFit - criminals are ‘clever' - number plate crime went up as with the price of petrol - now going down Younger People - a change in attitude that needs to take place - a different attitude can be developed - a different approach in different areas - a different need with different levels Cross (County) border policing communications are improving - prevents ‘drive' of crime from one place to another Always try to do what you feel is wanted by a Village Its impossible to deliver leaflets and info to every dwelling - people just aren't interested (or able) to do this - use Parish paper media wherever possible 7) National Neighbourhood Watch Week - 15th - 21st June This is five months away, but especially for those Parishes wanting to ‘restart' NW, this could be a good target date for work between now and then - the general message is to make it more of a ‘happening' week across the district but that lots of small (ie Parish based) activities combined would be better than a few larger promotions. Contacts: SDNW Chairman - Jim Bacon 9 York Close Studley Warks. B80 7PA Tel. Number 01527 857831 jimbacon@blueyonder.co.uk Peter Guillaume - Warwickshire Police (signing up for alerts etc) peter.guillaume@warwickshire.police.gov.uk Barry Armitage is the NW officer for Stratford District but unfortunately is not back at work after a recent back operation - we wish him as speedy a recovery as possible. |