COMMUNITY MESSAGING

Residents who receive Ringmaster messages via Neighbourhood Watch, or who participate in Community Messaging, may have noticed that there has been a significant reduction in the number of messages over the last 2-3 months?  This is the direct consequence of cost savings being required of TVP and the manner in which the Wycombe LPA are implementing these savings.  It has meant the loss of a dedicated NHWatch Administrator with his role being spread across 2 or 3 other police staff, necessitating the training of these individuals - which is ongoing - and a backlog of administrative tasks has accumulated.  Hopefully, ‘normal service will be resumed as soon as possible’

UNSOLICITED PHONE CALLS

Here’s a tip from a local resident for dealing with those unwanted telephone calls – often initiated by automated dialling. – offering to ‘fix’ your computer, etc.  If you answer the phone and actually speak to a human being, even if being called from a distance, ask the caller to ‘hold the line for a moment, then put the phone down and carry on doing whatever you were doing before the call.  Eventually the caller will get fed up and hang up – you have wasted his time rather than yours, and it hasn’t cost you anything. You will eventually hear your phone sounding to indicate that the connection has been broken and you can then hang up.  If we all do this, maybe ‘they’ will get the message!

THEFT OF METAL

Metal theft is a serious and growing national problem which the Government is determined to tackle. We are seeing a range of sectors affected: from national infrastructure including power, transport and communication networks, to impact on communities, for example the theft and damage to church roofs, heritage buildings and stealing road signs, drain covers and even war memorials. This is a matter for everybody in the community.  We all need to be alert to the situation and keep watch for vans and trucks prowling around our streets looking for the opportunity to steal metal – even from your skip without your permission! -  and reporting the details to the local police (Dial 101) or Crimestoppers (0800 555 111). No item of intelligence is ever too small; it might be the final piece of the jigsaw and in some cases there might even be the possibility of gaining a reward.