Neighbourhood Watch meeting – 27th April 2006 (update)

What a great turn-out! Congratulations to All!

With regard to our next Neighbourhood Watch Meeting.

We have now been officially sanctioned by the Police as a legitimate Neighbourhood Watch Organisation so our next meeting will be, in fact, our first official Neighbourhood Watch meeting. June the 27th (Tuesday) is the earliest date that is available and has been roughly pencilled in, but at this stage I am still awaiting confirmation.I will contact everyone to confirm date and time as soon as I can.

We shall be able to get properly organised and all questions and concerns can be voiced. Richard will detail his duties as Co-ordinator, and PC Arwyn Mason, our Community Police Officer will be on hand to answer questions.

In the meantime, don’t hesitate to report any concerns to Richard, and he will pass them on. Always contact the Police directly if in doubt.

After our last meeting, people expressed concern over the advice given to pass on telephone numbers to everyone involved. PC Mason’s advice is, ‘Don’t!’. It is neither necessary nor advisable; only ever give telephone numbers and personal information to close and trusted friends and neighbours. The only other people who will have access to everyone are the Police and the Co-ordinator and this information is strictly confidential.

At the Meeting, a couple of points were raised: one, that one or two people present had not been invited and were not welcome, due to their personal connection to the troublemakers. I personally, contacted by telephone, only the people on my list. Somehow, others got wind of the Meeting and turned up. No matter, I’m sure they got a nasty surprise by the amount of people and the strength of feeling expressed.
One other rather significant point pertaining to this: according to the Police, Councillor Fred Williams as representing Ponterwyd and the interests of residents, was invited to attend – but “declined”. No reason was given!

We have already had an example of Neighbourhood Watch at work.

On the very evening when we were at the Meeting, my next-door neighbours’ granddaughter, Bethan Jones, parked her car opposite ‘Glasfryn’ so that she could attend the Meeting. While we were all there, three girls from Ystumtuen, girl-friends of the boys who have caused all the trouble, deliberately scored a deep scratch along the side her car. £500 worth of damage. This, to a seventeen year old girl, born in Ponterwyd, and who has just lost her mother after a long and painful battle with cancer. What these vicious spiteful girls didn’t realise was, that the CCTV camera that Richard had installed had recorded the whole sick event – and they were caught “bang to rights! Neighbourhood Watch at Work! See you at our next Meeting! (18/5/06)