Ken Stockton
Welcome to the Neighbourhood Watch Page, this is where Ken Stockton, your Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator, has his say, he will keep you up to date with what is going on in the village and any important information regarding crime figures, also any issues that affect the security of our community, for instance local policing or general household protection.
The village is beautiful and unique… let’s keep that way.
It is intended that this page will be updated as and when it is deemed necessary.
Ken Stockton
Allow me to introduce myself. I am Ken Stockton, co-ordinator for this Watch which was formed in July 1990 and still has a nucleus of its founder members.
Before detailing further information regarding local Police and Neighbourhood Watch facilities I would like to point out a problem that is currently (July 2009) a crime that is not just confined to Suffolk, but is now occuring throughout England. This is the theft of many road signs, signs that relate to the whereabouts of villages, towns, various facilities, speed indicator signs etc. These signs are being stolen for their aluminium content as at the present time this metal is attracting very high prices. Please take care when you are travelling around the roads of Britain.
Back to the background information! Originally we were part of the St. Edmundsbury cluster where our beat officer was stationed at the Ixworth Police Station. Each beat officer was responsible for around one dozen villages and would patrol those villages on a reasonably regular basis. He (or she) would visit local schools, occasional Parish Council Meetings, perhaps W.I. Meetings etc… Obviously this officer would only cover one shift and other officers would provide cover when and where necessary.
As our local co-ordinator I have constant dealings with the Mid-Suffolk Crime Prevention Officer, Mr. David Gilson who, due to the nature of his job, seems to spend more time out of his office than in! He also has a part-time civilian clerk, Phil Kemp working for him who monitors police crime reports etc., and produces a fortnightly Crime report detailing all of the previous week’s “reported” crimes within the various Mid-Suffolk Sectors. I would like to clarify the inverted commas around reported. A crime is only recorded (reported), if the victim reports this to the police and receives a visit from probably the beat officer, who will take written details and allocate the relevant report reference number which will be quoted in all further enquiries, used for insurance claims etc. There are, of course, several crimes which the victim will report to me but for various reasons he or she does not want to take it any further, and I then ensure that the police are informed, as it may help them regarding other enquiries and / or to build up a bigger picture. It is then included along with “reported “crimes in my monthly column in the Walsham Observer which is, incidentally, distributed free to every house in the Parish. In these instances the victims name will not be passed on unless they are happy for me to just inform the police but without revealeding their identity locally. Any cases of Domestic Violence are NOT included in these reports.
Local inhabitants value their quality of life. We believe Suffolk and, in particular, Walsham le Willows, is the best place to live in and we try to take steps to keep Walsham safe by supporting our local police.
The concept of involving the community in partnership with the Police to combat crime first evolved in the U.S.A. in 1967 and the first such scheme in the UK was at Mollington in Cheshire in 1982. Walsham le Willows has now been part of the Neighbourhood Watch scheme since 1990.
The Aims and Objectives of Neighbourhood Watch
Walsham has a team of co-ordinators who try to ensure that details of any crimes that have occurred within the village are circulated to everybody. This is of course after the event but it does enable everyone to look at their own property and to then take any extra precautions that are possible. There is a Neighbourhood Watch column in every issue of the monthly magazine, ‘The Observer’, which is distributed to every household within the village. This magazine is free and is full of interesting articles giving local news and information. The Neighbourhood Watch column tries to warn residents of any crimes that may have occurred in neighbouring villages or of any trends that are occurring within the county. For example there has been an increase over the last two or three years of ‘Distraction Burglary’ (Also sometimes known as ‘Bogus Callers’) and this has been highlighted within our own column. The monthly column also tries to take a seasonal look at potential crimes and stresses any actions that everyone can take to avoid becoming a victim. These measures are our answer to fulfilling the ‘Aims and Objectives’ as detailed above.
The intention is that this part of the website will be updated on a reasonably regular basis depending on the factors as outlined in the previous paragraph; Watch this space!
And here is the very important update! This following section has now been updated as we have now, i.e. from June 2007, changed the whole concept of local policing with what is now known as SaferNeighbourhoods Teams. Walsham le Willows is now in the team known as Mid Suffolk North which contains the following parishes: Eye, Weybred, Mendham, Metfield, Fressingfield, Wortham, Burgate, Mellis, Thornham Parva, Gislingham, Thornham Magna, Syleham, Wingfield, Hoxne, Denham, Horham, Redlingfield, Athelington, Palgrave, Stuston, Oakley, Thrandeston, Brome, Yaxley, Redgrave, Hinderclay, Botesdale, Rickinghall Superior, Wattisfield, Rickinghall Inferior, Walsham le Willows, Stradbroke, Wilby, Laxfield, Worlingworth, Southolt, Brundish, Tannington, Rishangles, Bedingfield, Bedfield, Kenton, Monk Soham and Ashfield cum Thorpe. A total of 44 parishes!
Sergeant Jon Eaves
This area is one of the 47 teams that are now up and running across the whole of Suffolk. In our area, Mid Suffolk North, we are one of the 6 teams which all make up the Mid Suffolk area. Each team (area) is made up of police officers, police community support officers, special constables, and the team is supported by council staff, community partners and volunteers. The Mid Suffolk North team consists of Sergeant 1118 Jon Eaves, PC 158 Anthony Price, PC 1207 Tim Green, PCSO 3127 Nicolaas Kegge, PCSO 3171 Gemma Hamilton, PCSO Steve Long, Specials Sergeant 2038 Stuart Buxton and Special Constable 2505 Daniel Frost. The 2 police officers share the complete area between them with Anthony Price having the responsibility for the western side which includes our village of Walsham. Note that the term "WPC" is no longer used, they are all Police Constables.
PC Price
Important note: Naturally, with major changes to the way that the police organise their methods of policing within the rural areas there were bound to be minor adjustments to the structure of the SaferNeighbourhood teams once they had been up and running for a few months. In light of their experience of this radical method of policing these changes in our area were that Jaques Grotier had then been moved to take over our area whilst Chris Gilgan and Pauline Shadbolt had been moved to Stowmarket, and Sergeant Jon Eaves has replaced Chris Gilgan. NOW, as of January 2010 there has been yet another change and we are now (?) 'policed' by PC 158 Anthony Price who has previously worked within Bury St. Edmunds and Bury Rural. Watch this space! The other change relates to PC Jaques Grotier who has returned to his previous role as a Response Officer.
The following explains exactly what the role of the PCSO (Police Community Support Officer) entails. The PCSO's were first introduced in Mid Suffolk in 2007 when their main priority was to be a High Visibility patrol and to help deal with anti-social behaviour and to be responsible for actively gathering intelligence and information that can assist both the police and the public. During the last 18 months our particular PCSO has helped to increase a policing presence here in Walsham and has worked with our community to deal with a number of issues that regular police officers may not have been able to help due to a lack of time and other work commitments. Examples of this has been Nic's presence at our coffee mornings and other village events which has enabled him to talk to our residents who would otherwise probably not have had the opportunity to see a police representative.
PCSO Nicolaas Kegge
PCSO's have been given a list of powers which they can use ranging from the power to issue FPN's for disorder and to search for Alcohol and Tobacco to the power to stop traffic whilst on foot. These powers are constantly increasing and therefore PCSO's are able to assist with more incidents than previously. As well as helping the police to deal with crimes and events PCSO's actively patrol on foot, by bicycle or in marked police vehicles.
They also spend a lot of time in helping to identify insecurities in homes whilst on patrol and help to address those problems, and they also make referrals to outside agency's on behalf of those who may need assistance with help around the house or who are particularly vulnerable. PCSO's are actively involved not only with adults but also with the younger generation through regular visits to schools and youth clubs which helps to break down the stereotypes that many youngsters have about the police.
Unfortunately Speeding traffic has up until recently been something that PCSO's have not been able to assist with, however in the last year they have been able to help reduce speed through villages - but not necessarily here in Walsham! - by the use of SID and some PCSO's are being trained in the use of the speed gun, and our team is now in posession of one gun. The PCSO's are not able to actually to issue speeding tickets but warning letters can be sent to offenders and purely by having a roadside presence this tends to slow down the traffic. To sum up; The PCSO's ARE invaluable!
That finshes the description of the role of the PCSO, so back to the rest of the article!
The aim is that the team will be visible, accessible and reponsive to the needs of the community. They will listen to us to identify our concerns. Work with us in tackling any issues that we have identified and keep us informed of their progress. They will want to find out what most affects our quality of life, whether that is anti-social behaviour, graffiti, noisy neighbours or crime. They can then try and help to try and solve these problems, to create neighbourhoods that are safe and that actually feel safe.
The police will still provide emergency and 24-hour response. This remains a priority for Suffolk Constabulary and this will be provided by the Neighbourhood response teams as well as the officers in the SaferNeigbourhood teams. The main reason behind the creation of these SaferNeighbourhood teams is that the Government promised that all local communities would have a local Safer Neighbourhood team by 2008. Hence these teams will address issues affecting qualiy of life and feelings of safety.
Each of the SaferNeighbourhood teams hold a ‘Tasking Meeting’ on a monthly basis, UPDATE! as of February 2008 these are now bi-monthly meetings, where any problems that have occured during the last two months are brought to the table and discussed, with three items being given priority status for the team to resolve before the next meeting. The other members of the meetings include staff from District or Parish Councils and any other public organisations who have regular face to face contact with the local community. They may for example, be environmental health officers, fire officers, youth workers or social workers. They are therefore in the ideal position to be able to pass on any concerns from the local community to the Safer Neighbourhood teams. Now, in 2010 these meetings have been extended to include any members of the public who may wish to attend.
You can view the Mid Suffolk North Safer Neighbourhood Team website at: Safer Suffolk/Mid Suffolk North
We are no longer serviced by Elmswell Police Station but from now, May 30th 2007 the new team will be serviced from EYE Police Station. It should be noted that they no longer have a Station Clerk at Eye, therefore the chances of speaking to anyone on their phone are virtually non-existent, consequently any calls should be made to 01473 613500. Obviously in any instances where you are witnessing a ‘crime’ in progress, or in an emergency etc. you should dial 999. For help or advice you can always phone me, Ken Stockton on 01359 258093 or alternatively you can email on 9xkenneth@greenbee.net. I also email over 50 village residents with any relevant details that are received from the police and if you wish to be added to that list please email your email address to the above. I must point out that I only pass on whatever information that I feel is relevant, I do my best not to bombard people with an unlimited amount of un-necessary information.
Back to crime! I try to include in the Observer column various hints relating to crime prevention - in this I am helped by the information which I receive from the fortnightly crime reports and also by talking to the police whenever possible. I stress that Walsham le Willows is not a crime-ridden village, although it is not alone in its share of mindless vandalism which seems to be the sign of the times - is it too much violence on television, loss of family values, loss of parental control, teenage boredom, insufficient police presence, etc., etc.?
Come and see us! You will enjoy your visit.
Mid Suffolk District Council offers the following services to residents of Mid Suffolk: Through the Crime Prevention Panel there is the facility for you to have your valuables photographed within your own premises completely free of any charges. Your valuables, either monetary or sentimental would be photographed in situ and these photographs are then transferred onto a CD disc which is given to you, the owner. The photographs on the memory card in the camera are then "deleted" ensuring that the only record is the one that is left with you on the CD.
Not only is this a valuable asset should the owner be unfortunate enough to be burgled some time in the future as the CD can be loaned to the relevant insurance company, but it could also help to return the stolen goods if they should eventually be recovered by the Police. The Police do recover a certain amount of stolen goods but unfortunately they are not always able to trace their rightful owner, but they would often have information as to the broad area from which it had been stolen and they can then ask to see any CD's from that area. It will not prevent burglaries from happening but in those instances where it has taken place it could provide some very useful back-up material. It is, in effect, a valuable form of insurance and, it is free!
All that you need to do is to contact me, Ken Stockton on one of the numbers as detailed above. Unfortunately, to date there has been a much larger take-up of this service from people AFTER they have been burgled - something about horses and stable doors !
Another Mid Suffolk District Council service is known as "Safe and Secure," this relates to the security of your home. If you are Over 60, or Disabled, or in recept of Income Related Benefit and you are either homeowners or private tenants living in Mid Suffolk, you are entitled to have your home checked for Door Locks, Chains and Viewers; Window Locks; Smoke Detectors; Shed Security and Electronic Timer Switches. These will either be updated or supplied free of charge and the items will be professionally installed by scheme approved contractors to a specification recommended by Suffolk Police. If you qualify as above, the items and the installation will not cost you a penny - that is unless you force a cup of tea and a biscuit onto the contractor!
We recently had a "campaign"here in Walsham where we were promoting this scheme and over twenty householders signed up to have their properties protected and the reaction from these people has been extremely positive - they commented how quick and efficient the contractor had been and they have been delighted with the result. For more details telephone; 0845 606 0607 or Ken Stockton as above. Here ends the commercial break!
Ken Stockton
