First we have had a brief spate of burglaries and I asked
Anne Chalmers our Crime Reduction Advisor to put
something together specifically for us. There is always
something you can do, to deter our opportunist thieves.
These perpetrators always go for the easiest option. They
will, 99% of the time, walk past a house displaying a
burglar alarm box and then examine the house with the
weakest security, for easy access. Anne has targeted this
information for those that have easy, or open access from
the side (alley way) or rear.
Anne deals with this issue in the same way that you peel
an onion. You start at the external perimeter of your
property – the boundary hedges / fences / garden walls /
driveways / side accesses and examine the defences from
that point. Stand in each of these areas and think like an
intruder – how would you get in ? Is it easy ? Hopw easy
– easier than next door ? Are you overlooked ? Might
someone see you ? How easy it would be to get inside
and then to the back of the house unseen ?
Let’s start with the boundary - keeping potential offenders
as far away as possible, from the house.
Rear boundary fencing
“The recommended height for a rear fence, is normally
1.8m. If it borders public land, alleyways or river paths,
then 0.3m trellis can be added on top”. This trellis should
not be attached firmly which might give someone a grip,
but loosely and interwoven with roses or other prickly
plants. There is also a product ‘Prikka Strip’ which can be
purchased by the meter from security outlets. It is three
rows of ¾ inchplastic spikes, which will alert someone to
the fact that something is there, but not cause cuts to the
fingers. If you have a cat which runs along the fence,
attach them to the inside edge where fingers would reach
over to get a grip.
Where residents have a ‘view’ and may wish to see the
river / countryside from the house / rear garden and
consequently have very low perimeter hedges, there is a
solution which is possibly aesthetically acceptable and,
visually permeable. This would only be considered if you
felt particularly vulnerable or the problem was acute.
Weld mesh fencing has been developed for just this
purpose. It is secure but quite transparent. The
recommended height for this fencing is between 1.5 to 1.8
m
Whether you put in fencing or not, protect by the boundary
by planting a wide but low defensive hedge / border to
prevent anyone landing in that particular place if they have
fence hopped. This again allows visibility of neighbouring
green space
A gate can be incorporated into these boundary fences.
The gate should be the same height as the fencing and
secured with a robust padlock.
This option is of course gold standard and for the most
severe situations. Any form of barrier tells people that the
land beyond is private. Generally only those up top no
good will cross it.
The Next Step Lighting
Anyone with a more open property should fit external
security lighting. This does not only have to be fitted to
the house walls, but can easily be fitted in long gardens to
pick up any movement. As I recently advertised, there is a
new product recently brought over from the USA – a
Guard Cam. This looks and functions exactly like an
external security light. It has though a hidden secret – an
HDD camera which records every time the sensor is
activated – day or night. The advantage at night, is of
course - the subject is brilliantly lit by the security light
itself. It records onto an SD RAM camera card. The pack
also includes a ‘card reader’ so that you can download
any footage to your computer in the same way you down
load your photos from a camera. You can then email any
images to the police or anyone else !!! The downside of
external security lights is of course obvious – they are not
a deterrent during daylight hours – but these will still
record any movement.
An Important Issue - Sheds and out buildings
Our opportunist thieves are well known to us and are
regularly stop checked. They therefore cannot carry
anywhere on their person any item which the police could
construe as to be used to commit crime. No screw drivers
or anything that could be used to commit car crime or
burglary. So – if they find a possible target, they need to
find the necessary tools on site – where from ??? Sheds
and garages where we all store tools of all kinds. In Old
Windsor last week a garden spade was used to break
security lights.
First Windows
Stop them looking into your shed / garage through
windows to see what you have on display.
Whitewash the windows, hang net curtains or use
that glue on plastic frosting used in bathroom
windows.
 Fit a grille or, as a heaper alternative, chicken wire, to
slow a thief down.
 Bond any window glass in place with mastic to
prevent easy removal
 Plant thorny shrubs under windows to act as a
barrier, so they cannot get near a window to look
inside.
Next Doors
 Use tamper proof screws or coach bolts together with
a good quality, pad bar or hasp and staple and a
close shackled padlock (one where the round bar to
go through the hasp is not exposed for easy cutting,
but is built inside the padlock itself), to secure a shed.
Lighting:
• Install security lighting as a deterrent you can get
solar lights for this exact purpose
Shed Alarms:
• A shed alarm can also be installed. PIR Shed sensor
alarms are available from Red Line security
Shed contents:
• Ensure all tools and equipment are locked away
when not in use. Secure tools within a lockable
metal storage container, within your shed.
• Bikes, mowers and other valuable garden tools can
all be chained together to make stealing them more
difficult. A tip from one our members was to buy a
bucket and some large heavy chain and cement it
into the bucket leaving a loop to lock everything else
to !!! Every thing helps – even small things
Having dealt with the perimeter and the land between that
and the house:
The House Itself (Shell of property)
Are your doors and windows secure? Lock windows and
doors, deterring easy access!!!
All External doors:
Wood
• Locks are only as good as the door into which they
are fitted. External doors and door frames should be
robust and solid. BS PAS 24 is the recommended
standard, if you are replacing the door.
• Letterboxes should be protected with a letterbox
guard – or an American style letterbox at the
entrance to your property – so that no-one has the
excuse to walk up your drive to deliver / put a leaflet
through your door.
UPVC doors
• Double lock your doors with the door key at night and
whenever you go out ! DO NOT LEAVE KEYS IN
DOORS !
• Fitting additional security features to existing UPVC
doors may weaken the door frame structure and
invalidate the door warranty– I’d recommend the
home owners talks with the door manufacturer
The most effective deterrent:
Burglar Alarms
• If you have an alarm do you set it?
• If you don’t have an alarm, but your neighbours do –
opportunist thieves will automatically consider you
the weakest option. They no longer cost a fortune
and with wireless technology do not damage your
decoration and are very simple to install – an
operate. You use a key fob to set and unset it – no
fiddling with complicated codes.
• Almost all alarms now come with separate zones, so
that you can set the alarm downstairs, when you go
upstairs to bed or the whole house, when you go out.
• Most alarms now are pet sensitive. In the past, this
was the most common reason people did not set
their alarms and thieves looked for evidence of a pet
accordingly.
• Most alarms now incorporate a sounding alarm inside
the property. If ever you have been inside a house
when one goes off, you will know why, - you just
have to leave they are so loud
Audible Alarms
• Suitable for urban locations, terraced streets where
neighbours / passers by, will be alerted by an alarm
activation.
Monitored Alarms
• Suitable for remote or isolated locations or for those
that don’t want to involve their neighbours.
Where to go for products, manufacturers and
installers
First try recommendations from Neighbours, secondly
local high street businesses – they have a reputation to
keep up, national companies – but get several quotes,
their prices do vary quite considerably
• The National Security Inspectorate (NSI)
www.nsi.org.uk
• The Security Systems and Alarm Inspection Board
(SSAIB) www.ssaib.org
• Secured by Design
http://www.securedbydesign.com
Anne Chalmers
Crime Prevention & Reduction Advisor
Maidenhead,Windsor and Slough LPA's
Neighbourhood Policing & Partnerships | Thames Valley
Police |
Land line: 01753 835467
Email: anne.chalmers@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk
That looks quite comprehensive. Let me know, or
contact Anne for any further advice / recommendations.
Please also be aware that all our PCSOs are fully
trained to carry out Home Security Surveys and offer
advice. Simply email your Neighbourhood Team on
the group email address below.