Comments on: Things that go BUMP in the night

By: Baz_k

Baz_k — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 11:45:25 +0000

Sorry Mclovin, I have a lot of contact with the Police due to one of my “hobbies” and I think they do a fair job under very difficult conditions which is dictated by Government and the Courts.

Whilst they do not tend to our every need (I’d like to see more patrols etc) it’s not their fault!

By: Mclovin

Mclovin — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 23:34:17 +0000

Sounds like a fair way to describe the Police… lottery. Have to agree with that.

Let’s be honest you have very little chance of winning… (1 in a milllion??)

By: Baz_k

Baz_k — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 14:57:37 +0000

Unfortunately I have some sympathy with the Police on this one.
Unless they know about something, they can not do anything about it, and they do have limited resources and as such will allocate to “those who shout loudest” which you have to admit is the way everything works.

Unless we all take responsibility for reporting things, then we can not expect anyone else to.

I guess it’s like the lottery, you can’t expect to win unless you buy a ticket.

By: Mclovin

Mclovin — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 11:31:46 +0000

Hi Clive,

I think this story is a pretty stark reminder about why people may not want to call the police. It seems that they are really not interested unless you suggest you will deal with it yourself, and I suspect that they are not really fearful for you, but the kids.

I think reporting things to the police is the right idea, but if this is the type of general response I would likely encounter I would think twice about wasting my time.

By: Clive

Clive — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 07:55:37 +0000

Hi Nephros, That sounds like a bit of a nightmare! I had a few similar experiences at my old address where I found that the Police are very slow to respond to incidents of this kind unless you say you are going to confront the youths yourself... then they will come fairly quickly! I would be willing to take part in an occasional "patrol" but I live on the other end of Kingsway and am too busy to guarantee being available (I often work until very late at night). I hope you'll get some volunteers to participate in your scheme. Did you get a letter from the Neighbourhood Watch organiser? It may be something that they could organise. Getting Involved On the subject of reporting such things to the Police, I am also frustrated that people are so reluctant to get involved and report problems. As I mentioned in this post I am the local representative to the "Quedgeley and Hardwicke Community Police - Neighbourhood Panel". The idea is that members of the panel will monitor local crime and ASB problems by asking local residents to report them using this form. Then we compile those (confidential) reports, and use them to prioritise future Neighbourhood Police activities in the area. Sadly, despite several posts and comments about local crime and ASB problems, nobody has used this form to date and so - when I attend the next meeting - I will have to report that there are no local issues, and the prioritisation of issues will be decided by the members in Quedgeley and Hardwicke... with no input from Kingsway!