Autumn Nights Safety Campaign

Autumn Nights Safety Campaign

Autumn Nights Safety Campaign

Met Police & Local Authority - Working Together For A Safer Havering

With the clocks having gone back, the evenings become darker earlier, the opportunities for criminals increase and we often see a rise in burglaries, as many homes are left unlit alerting burglars to homes that are empty.

We also see rises in anti -social behaviour and street crimes. As a result, the Autumn Nights Safety Campaign is aimed to tackle anti-social behaviour and associated criminality.

The Autumn Nights Safety campaign offers residents advice on how to stay safe both at home and when out-and-about as the nights draw in and the days become shorter.

This is a good time of year to review your home security, and we recommend taking steps to check you are Autumn ready.

Key advice for residents include:

Always lock your doors and windows at night and when leaving your home, even for short periods. Remember with UPVC doors, it is essential to lock the door fully to be secure. LIFT the handle, LOCK the door with the key and then REMOVE the key from the lock. Simply lifting the handle does not lock your door or window. Many offences have been committed by suspects gaining entry via insecure doors and windows.

Light up your home. Use timer switches for lighting to come on earlier within in your home and utilise outside lighting.

Keep your home visible by keeping shrubs, bushes and fences low, giving criminals nowhere to hide.

CCTV can be a valuable tool and act as a deterrent. Ensure you display signage to act as a warning and check legislation that your CCTV complies with the law.

For more information on how to protect your home visit www.met.police.uk/cp/crime-prevention/protect-home-crime/keep-burglars-out-property/

Here are some tips for keeping yourself safe when you are out and about this Autumn. Please remember that if you feel threatened or are in danger, always dial 999.

Be aware of your surroundings when walking alone, especially at night, tell family or friends where you are look up, look out

Plan your route avoiding shortcuts in isolated places.

Try not to walkalong with your phone or valuables on show

Record your mobile phone IMEI number using *#06# and activate a tracking app. Try and use the tracking app as soon as you can before thief can disable it.

For more information about personal safety, please visit www.met.police.uk/cp/crime-prevention/personal-safety-how-to-stay-safe/

Share your experience of where you felt unsafe to StreetSafe – a pilot designed for the public to anonymously tell us about public places where they’ve felt unsafe. StreetSafe – police.uk

The campaign will also remind residents of the safety advice around attending or taking part in events such as Halloween and Bonfire Night.

Havering Police Neighbourhoods Chief Inspector Charlie Routley said:

When the nights get longer we often see an increase in crime and anti social behaviour and this can leave people feeling more vulnerable.

Over the coming weeks our officers will be completing dedicated patrols in areas most affected such as town centres and open spaces to prevent crime and respond to an increase in calls for police.

Our teams are working closely with Havering council, whether it is visits to shops selling fireworks with Trading Standards, or working with CCTV operators assisting us monitor incidents and intercept potential offenders.

If you would like to hear more from your local policing team about what they are doing, sign up to Met Engage where you can find out more information about the officers dedicated to where you live www.metengage.co.uk

For more detailed crime prevention advice, visit our webpage https://www.met.police.uk/cp/crime-prevention/

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Message Sent By
Catherine Brindley-McEvoy
(Metropolitan Police, Sergeant, ICE)