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Dear Residents, We have had an eventful month this February. My team and I have been very busy tackling the recent spate of burglaries, carrying out extra patrols and stop checks of any suspicious persons, as well as reassurance visits and crime prevention visits to homes in the area. A number of arrests have been made with regards to the recent series however, as yet I am unable to reveal the outcome so watch this space for further details. The three main priorities I will be looking at in Kempshott for the following month are:
Traffic issues surrounding schools Dwelling burglaries Underage drinking and related issues Traffic Issues I have been asked to look into the traffic and parking issues surrounding Kempshott infants and junior school. Amongst other things it has come to my attention that a number of parents and residents have been using the parking spaces in Buckingham Parade and the Buckingham Court area as a pick up and drop off point for the school. This is not a problem as the parking bays are not restricted. However it becomes unacceptable when the road is blocked to such an extent that the ambulance parking bay used for local residents is blocked and cars are parked behind the parking bays blocking each other in. I will be carrying out a traffic operation in the area and any traffic offences we come across will be dealt with robustly. Those of you who have trouble finding parking spaces for the school at peak times, I do understand how difficult it is as parking is always an issue surrounding schools, all I ask is that you are considerate of the residents who live around the area as I’m sure you can appreciate, to be blocked in on a daily basis can be very frustrating and being unable to receive help if you need it can be very worrying. So that I can assess the situation fully before speaking with the school, council, residents and parents about possible solutions, if you have any issues about this problem you think I need to be made aware of please contact me on the details provided at the end of my article. Dwelling Burglaries Over the last few months Kempshott was subjected to a number of house burglaries as you already know from my previous articles. Together with the vigilance of residents, the well run neighbourhood watch schemes and the extra patrols and enquires, the amount of offences have been significantly reduced. However, I want to take this time to remind you to keep an eye out for anything suspicious or out of the ordinary, if in doubt call it in to the police. The common theme in the recent burglaries appeared to be residents going away on holiday. Also let your neighbours know so they can keep an eye on your house. Please be aware that if you are due to go on holiday and you receive any door to door calls offering services it is often a force of habit to ask them to come back another time as you are going away as a means of getting them to leave you alone or maybe you genuinely want what they are offering but can’t deal with it now. Although most door to door sales are respectable you can never be too sure so have extra excuses ready if you feel you can’t just say no or would like them to call again later, that way you will not reveal too much about your personal life. We have been patrolling the area and several addresses have been identified where windows have been left open during the day and keys left in doors. Underage drinking and related issues There has been a large amount of media coverage on this. On my weekend patrols around Kempshott the majority of youths I speak to have been drinking to some extent whether they have had a small amount or are extremely drunk. In some cases the parents of the children have bought the alcohol for them and I am not talking about “ALCO POPS” I have seized litres of Vodka and Martini in the past. The children are as young as 12 years old that and at times I have found them passed out through alcohol. The problem is here to stay unless we all work together on it. There are a number of things we do if we come across children with drink, parents are informed - they are either asked to come and collect them or they are taken home or on to hospital depending on the state of them or to a police station as a result of their drunken behaviour if offences have been committed. The alcohol is seized, poured away or kept and used as evidence depending on where it was purchased from and by whom. We have equipment to test soft drinks by means of a mouth swab or dip stick so if drink is suspected but none is found we can still look after the safety of the children. I firmly believe the main cause of Antisocial behaviour involving youths is as a of direct result of alcohol and also the main cause for youths getting into situations they have no control over which is a frightening thought. I would like those of you who are parents to ask yourself do you know where your children are when they go out at night? Do you know who they are with? What they are up to? If they are off to a party will there be alcohol? Maybe have a chat with them about alcohol and the dangers. If you would like anymore information or leaflets on the subject to talk to your children about please contact me and I will help anyway I can. Kempshott has its own web page on the Hampshire Constabulary website with my contact details on it. It also holds further information about what is going on around the beat. You can use this as a way to contact me or email me directly. I look forward to seeing you around the beat Pc Loraine Stockham Beat manager Kempshott (Article supplied by Kempshott Kourier)
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