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Dave lives in the Upton Rocks area of Widnes and joined Neighbourhood Watch in February 2019. At that time, the ward area was plagued by severe anti-social behaviour, knife crime, drug use, vandalism, arson, and robberies. The local PCSO, Chris Carr appealed to residents for help in tackling these issues, and Dave came forward. Over the next six months, working relentlessly and together with Chris and the community, Dave was pivotal in setting up a Neighbourhood Watch Scheme and improving community safety. These efforts significantly reduced crime and Dave was nominated by Chris for the CNWA awards, winning New Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator of the Year in November 2019. For this article we interviewed Dave to get the full story.

How long have you been involved in Neighbourhood Watch?

I’ve been involved in the Neighbourhood Watch since January 2019 – just two years.

What prompted you to become a Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator?

Having moved to a new area of predominantly ‘new-build’ houses with my wife and nine year old daughter, I was very keen to integrate into our local community and to do what I could to make a positive contribution to my new neighbourhood. As with any new-build community, it takes a while for people to get to know one another and for that community to grow. I saw this as being something that I could become involved with and an opportunity to help in the formation of our neighbourhood community.

Did you find it straightforward to sign up and get your scheme started?

Yes, it was very straightforward. Once I made decision to become involved, I confirmed my commitment and had a meeting with my PCSO (Chris Carr) who was very supportive. I went out knocking on doors in my street and introduced myself to all the residents. I explained that I was starting up a Neighbourhood Watch Scheme for our area and if they would like to become involved as members. The response was fantastic! People were keen to be involved and after collating names and contact details, I distributed NW window stickers to each household that signed up. Once I had signed up the members I established a WhatsApp group which is an ideal form of media for instant messaging. 

What activities did you start in your community?

At the time of forming our NW scheme, we experienced some incidents of anti-social behaviour in our local park. Youths had begun to congregate in the park and on the children’s playground, defacing the area and causing wilful damage to the playground itself. Local families felt intimidated by their presence and were reluctant to use the facility. After communicating with the members of our scheme we decided to re-claim the park and arranged a picnic in the park. We encouraged as many families as we could to meet in the park with a picnic and spent many hours enjoying the facilities. The following year, we held another event. A fun day supported by a local guides group who were raising funds for an international jamboree, provided barbeque and tombola, the local police were involved and brought along the police vehicles for the children to sit in. Older children held a football match whilst younger children enjoyed the facilities the park has to offer. In addition to such events, the scheme and its residents have fostered close relationships supporting the police and our local PCSO. By remaining vigilant as a community, we have reported on crime and ASB, provided CCTV footage to assist the police in crime prevention and supported one another through these difficult times since the pandemic, from taking in deliveries for neighbours to helping with shopping or errands for those that need it. 

What has been the impact of your Neighbourhood Watch Scheme on your community?

The NW scheme has brought people together. Provided a real sense of community spirit and helped the police in reporting incidents of ASB or crime. In addition, the WhatsApp facility has provided a mechanism for all our residents to communicate with one another and get an instant response. That in itself gives real peace of mind knowing that someone is always there if needed.

What would you say to anyone thinking of getting involved with Neighbourhood Watch, but maybe does not think they have the time, or doesn’t think that it will make any difference?

If you are thinking of setting up a scheme in your area, then I would wholeheartedly recommend it. To feel part of a community that cares about the area we live in and will help each other out is very reassuring.

Comments from PCSO Chris Carr who covers the Birchfield area of Widnes

I am PCSO 20378 Chris Carr. Over three years ago now I was assigned to the Birchfield ward in Widnes as the full time ward officer. The area itself is very nice, it has an established area with a newer Upton Rocks estate. At that time the estate had a row of shops and a park which were both suffering a massive amount of anti-social behaviour (ASB), criminal damage, alcohol and drug use, violence and robberies.

As the local PCSO I tried my best to resolve these matters but with limited success due to the sheer volume of youths that would frequent the area. At weekends this could amount to over 100 youths congregating at the park.

As you can imagine, the local community were up in arms and confidence in the police was at an all time low. I knew I needed to do something to get the community to engage with the police, report the ongoing issues and take a role in resolving the problem.

I decided to run a recruitment campaign for Neighbourhood Watch using social media. After a number of months without success Dave Brown contacted me expressing his interest in becoming a Coordinator for the estate where he lives. Within days Dave had set up the first Neighbourhood Watch scheme in the Birchfield. He went door to door recruiting his neighbours. His Neighbourhood Watch scheme was very successful, which in turn inspired other community members to get involved.

As part of his role Dave, along with others, instigated a community day in the park. With Dave’s help local people decided to frequent the park at key times so would be perpertators of ASB would feel reluctant to stay. This had a dramatic effect on the ongoing issues. Due to being part of the Neighbourhood Watch Network, Dave’s scheme has been able to utilise the insurance provided, free of charge, to put on these types of events.

I feel the best part of Dave’s work was getting the community to engage with the police once again. He fought our corner and residents responded positively to the police. Confidence in the police was restored, residents began to report issues and engage with me. The area improved dramatically.

There are still issues every now and then, as expected, but my area has gone from having the worst ASB hotspot in the borough to the area with the least ASB in Widnes. 

I feel Dave, as a Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator, was pivitol in this process. With Dave’s help and encouragement, the residents in my community are now much more willing to engage with me and work with me to solve any problems that we come up against.

Neighbourhood Watch Coordinators are pivitol for a successful beat area and a invaluable resource.