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The Neighbourhood Watch's Security Tips
These very low-tech but cost effect tips courtesy of The Neighbourhood Watch, can help improve a properties security and promote a more secure mindset.
Low-Tech Security Tips
We work closely with the local Neighbourhood Watch and sponsor the publication of their Newsletters - Here is an extract from a recent publication:
WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT?
Unlocked Back Door
A couple are sitting in the lounge watching television. It is early evening and the back door is unlocked. Unbeknown to them, an opportunist burglar enters the property, removes jewellery and other small items, some from an upstairs room, and departs undetected. Much to their dismay, the two residents only discover the burglary when preparing to go to bed!
Unlocked Side Gates
Two elderly residents normally keep their 2 metre high side gate locked but decide, on this occasion, to leave the house from the rear entrance and depart leaving their side gate unlocked. When they return, they discover that they have been burgled, with entry having been made through a rear window via the side gate!
Open Window Invitation
A lady is working in the house. It is a warm day and she has a kitchen window open. Unfortunately, she leaves her purse on that very windowsill. When she returns to the kitchen she cannot find her purse. It has been stolen!
Car Keys in View
A family retires for the night leaving their new 4x4 parked on the driveway. In the morning it has gone. Investigations subsequently point to the likelihood that a thief acquired the vehicle's keys by using a hook device through the cat flap and lifting them from a nearby shelf where they were usually kept!
All the above are based on actual crimes and speak for themselves. Do not make it easy for the criminal. Use common sense precautions to protect what is yours.
Crime Prevention in the Garden
Sheds
These are often overlooked as a security risk , sadly not by the thief who finds them filled with tools and electric equipment to steal or to use to break into houses or other outbuildings. Fit a good quality lock and make sure hinges cannot be removed from the outside. Consider a battery operated alarm.
Tools
Etch your post code on to all tools and fittings, including garden furniture. These should all be put away when not in use. Patio furniture is often used to reach insecure windows.
Ladders
Make sure that ladders are secured so that they cannot be used to scale walls or fences, or be used in burglary. Brackets, chairs and a good quality lock prove effective.
Lighting
Fit lighting that is turned on by timer or darkness sensor.
Insurance
Check that your household insurance policy covers theft from your garden and outbuildings.
Nip Crime in the Bud
Home grown garden security need not cost a fortune. In fact, some measures can enhance your garden. A garden can never be completely secure. But there are many things that can be done to reduce the opportunities for theft of tools, ornaments and plants, as well as reducing the opportunity for a burglar to gain entry to your property
Fences
To raise a 4ft high wall, extending it with more masonry could prove expensive, unsightly and no more secure. Extend the height with a wooden fence on top to create a barrier. It looks attractive but is not solid enough to support a thief.
Trellis
Add a trellis to a fence or wall - it is difficult to climb and liable to collapse noisily if someone tries.
Paths
Gravel paths are not popular with thieves because they make a noise when walked on.
Top Ten Deterrent Plants
- Holly (Illex) - Attractive evergreens for hedges, bushes and trees.
- Berberis (especially B Thunbergil B x stenophylla and B Wilsonae) - Dense arching deciduous shrub, giving good spread
- Roses (Rosa rugosa) - A dense species of up to 6ft (2m) in total.
- Pyracantha (Firethorn) - Freestanding evergreen shrub that can also be trained against a wall.
- Gorse (Ulex europeaeus) - Bushy shrub with year-round dark green shoots and spines.
- Sea Buckthron (Hippophae rhamnoides) - A large shrub; can reach height and spread of about 18ft (6m)
- Japanese Quince (Chaenomeles japonica) - A sprawling shrub that can be trained against walls.
- Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) - Ideal grown as a hedge. Can reach a height of about 30ft (10m). Barbed wire-like thorns cause cuts that can turn septic,
- Oleaster (Elaeagnus angustifolia) - Good height and width.
- Blackberries - Living barbed wire, and an excellent deterrent.
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