Yer Tiz June 2014 Vol 37 No 6 No 6 | Page 13

Send your news, articles and notices to [email protected] Neighbourhood Watch Hi all, As it is fast approaching the holiday season I thought I would give you a few tips on securing your property from the Wiltshire Police web site. WHILE YOU ARE AWAY We all look forward to going on holiday but want to make sure that while we are away our homes are safe from intruders. Before leaving your property, to go on that long awaited holiday, here are few tips from Wiltshire Police to reduce the chances of your property becoming a target for burglars. Tell your neighbour. Ask a neighbour , one you trust, to look after your property when you are away by drawing the curtains, turning lights on/off, pushing post through the letterbox, etc. If taking your car, ask your neighbour to park a car on your drive. Make your property look like it is occupied 24/7. Don’t forget to cancel all newspapers and milk. Restrict access to the rear of your property. Nearly 90% of all domestic burglary is targeted from the rear. Restrict the access by locking side gates and make sure that all outside lighting is in good order. Lock away garden tools and equipment. Many opportunist crimes are committed by using tools or hard implements such as stones, found lying around. Exterior doors and windows. Lock all exterior doors and windows. Check and then ask someone else to double check. Do not keep any keys in the lock or nearby but make sure you and your family know where these keys are stored in case you need to get out. Internal lighting. Use time switches to turn on lights, radios etc. This will give the impression the house is occupied. Alarms. Quality fitted alarms will certainly be a deterrent to burglars but do check that you have turned it on before leaving. Hope this helps. If you have any facts that you think might be of interest for this page of the magazine please sent them to me as I am slowly running out of material. Best regards, Rosemary Ward Neighbourhood Watch coordinator Atworth Kind regards, Rosemary Ward Atworth Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator. Yer Tiz Atworth Village Magazine—June 2014 Page 13