Your neighbourhood 

Caversham Lower neighbourhood update

Update for July

Here is the latest update for the Lower Caversham neighbourhood, from Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) Rob Dunford:

While the sunshine has had the mercury rising, the crime figures for Lower Caversham continue to fall, with a slight drop of 4 per in the ‘All Crime’ category for the Mar-May period. Between March and May 2009 we averaged 84 crimes per month and during the same period this year that figure fell to 80.7  

Anti social behaviour (ASB) figures dropped significantly, by 36.5 per cent for the quarter but burglary is up by six crimes using the same comparison.  Vehicle crime shows no change for the quarter with an average of 7.7 crimes per month.  

 

Neighbourhood Action Group (NAG)

The Lower Caversham NAG held its annual public meeting at the New Testament Church of God on 10 June. About 40 local residents attended and following discussion, the three new priorities were set for the area for the coming year. These will be burglary, traffic related issues and ASB.

If you are a local resident and are interested in attending future NAG meetings, contact Insp Penny Mackenzie at penny.mackenzie@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk or via 08458 505 505.  If you would like to know more about the recent activities of your local NAG, you can visit their website at http://www.uknags.org.uk/groups.php.

Priority 1 – Burglary

The past few weeks has seen in excess of 20 bike thefts in the Caversham area, where sheds and garages have been forced and (at times, several) bikes taken.  In response to this the Caversham team has been on the lookout for suspicious bikes and as a result some have been recovered and their unlawful ‘owners’ charged with handling stolen goods.  If you are a bike owner, please take every precaution to keep your cycle safe: record any unique identifiers for your bike, e.g. frame numbers and customisations; make sure your bike is always locked, even inside a shed; and consider the security of the storage facility.

If you are worried about the risk of being burgled, the Caversham team is trained to provide Crime Reduction advice and is always willing to do a free home security survey with you.  Simply call us on 08458 505 505, and you can arrange for a member of the team to visit at your convenience.

If you would like to know more about burglary reduction tips, contact us or visit www.thamesvalley.police.uk.

Priority 2 – Antisocial Behaviour (ASB)

In the summer months it is traditionally the case that police observe increased ASB due to the longer evenings and warmer weather bringing people outside, but as the stats above show, at the moment we can be cautiously optimistic.  

There have, however, been a number of recent reports relating to the antisocial use of quad bikes/mini motos in the area of Star Road and The Causeway.  If you observe this behaviour, be sure to make a note of any descriptions and registration numbers, as this will help us catch the people involved and deal with them appropriately.

ASB can appear minor to the casual observer, but over time may turn into a much more serious issue for local residents.  For this reason, it is really crucial that all incidents of Anti-Social Behaviour are logged with Thames Valley Police before they have a chance to escalate.  We cannot know everything that goes on in Caversham, but you can help us by picking up the phone and dialling 08458 505 505.

Priority 3 – Road Traffic Issues

The issue of inconsiderate cycling has always been one of concern to the people of Caversham, especially around the matter of people cycling quickly on the pavement.  We understand the reasons that people use the pavement rather than the roads, and statistically cyclists injured by cars are more common than pedestrians injured by cyclists.  Nevertheless, it is against the law to cycle on the pavements and anyone we catch using the footpaths unsafely risks incurring a £30 on-the-spot fine.

More From Your Team

PCSO Chloë Denny and I have been continuing to work with Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinators in Mayfield Drive to distribute ‘SelectaDNA’ packs around the road.  SelectaDNA is a property marking technology which you can read more about at http://www.selectadna.co.uk/.  The project is progressing well, and the packs are being very received well by residents.

As mentioned above, a number of bikes have been stolen in recent weeks and the team has been keeping a keen lookout for them around Caversham.  PCSO Denny and I successfully took two bikes from an address in Lower Caversham, and they have since been confirmed as stolen property.  This proves the bikes are out there, so please let us know if you spot anything out of the ordinary yourselves.

The team has also been getting involved with operations around the World Cup.  Insp Mackenzie, Sgt Rob Pitman and PCs Debbie Smith, Michelle Clements and Buzz Khezrzadeh have all taken part in operations to keep the peace in Reading’s pubs and clubs on match days, and PCSO Denny and I have made appearances at local community screenings to meet residents and ensure that no-one spoils the game.

Members of the Caversham team also hosted a Have Your Say surgery in St Martin’s Precinct this month, giving members of the public a chance to meet us and ask any questions they might have about crime and policing in the area.  We received some really positive and useful comments from our residents, which have only served to reinforce our commitment to serving their interests in Caversham.

Community News

Caversham residents were recognised this month at a Police Commendation Ceremony for their efforts helping us to keep our community free from crime.  Archie Denton, aged 12, confronted a burglar in his home and helped bring the offender to justice, being described as “an example to us all” by Supt Steve Kirk.  Jane and Paul Cooper were commended for alerting us to a cannabis factory in their neighbouring property and identifying one offender who tried to escape justice.  Supt Kirk praised the family, describing them as “an excellent example of people taking a stand against crime in their neighbourhood.”  

Representatives from the Police and Reading Borough Council carried out an Environmental Visual Audit of the area of St John’s Road and Nelson Road on 15 June, looking at issues such as road surfaces, fencing and the maintenance of borders and foliage.  If you have concerns about environmental issues in your area (e.g. litter, graffiti), contact us and we can arrange EVAs to assess the problem.

Offences dealt with this month in Lower Caversham included:

Karlyle Fox-Dyall, aged 20, from Mead Close, Caversham, has been charged with handling stolen goods in relation to a shed burglary in Peppard Road, Caversham, between 7 and 8 June, where a number of bikes were stolen. He has been released on bail to appear at Reading Magistrates’ Court on July 6.

*A 26 year old man from Katesgrove has been charged with going equipped to burgle after being arrest in Oxford Street, Caversham in May. He has pleaded guilt at court and is awaiting sentence.

*A 48 year old woman and a 37 year old man have each been charged for shoplifting.

Got a concern you want to discuss?  You can talk to a member of the team about it at one of our ‘Have Your Say’ meetings:

4 July, at 2pm - Hampden Road

13 July, 7.30pm - Cromwell Road

14 July, 7.30pm - Westfield Road

26 July, 7.30pm- Wolsey Road

1 August 11am - St Stephens Close

Contact: PC Debbie Smith

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