Have you ever heard something suspicious but haven’t known what to do about it? Salt Rock Neighbourhood Watch (SRNW) helps you handle information and pass it on to the right people.
The SRNW is a highly successful scheme which was founded in 2002. We provide the infrastructure and platform to bring residents, local security companies and the Police together to protect our community. Our success relies on the participation of the SRNW members.
The truth of the matter is that crime is everywhere, in every type of community, and since the Police cannot possibly be everywhere, all of the time, we need to participate by becoming the first line of defence in the fight against crime. At the core, we are all driven by the fact that we would like to live in a safe, clean and secure environment.
The SRNW is not about being vigilantes and putting ourselves at risk or in danger, but to actively observe our surroundings and to report any suspicious activity – it is about establishing a formal network for concerned citizens to report information to the local police, support each other in the community and follow crime prevention advice, reducing the opportunity for crime to occur by making it difficult for criminals. Members go about their normal lives but in addition, keep their eyes open for suspicious persons or vehicles in the neighbourhood.
We urge everyone and anyone living in Salt Rock, Sheffield and Umhlali to join forces with us so that we can become an even more powerful force to be reckoned with. The benefits to anyone joining the Watch are numerous.
Neighbourhood Watch – The Facts
Residents of a community possess a specialised knowledge of their neighbourhood that even the proverbial ‘village bobby’ would take years to acquire. A police officer might not recognise someone in your garden as a stranger, but a neighbour would. This is what SRNW is all about.
Some residents think they shouldn’t ring the police when they see something suspicious going on at a neighbour’s house. They don’t want anyone to think they’re being nosy, prying around net curtains at other people’s business.
At SRNW the residents all agree that they want each other to be vigilant as far as crime is concerned. If you have the phone number of the lady next door and you ring her at work to check that a removal firm should be clearing his house, who wouldn’t be grateful?
Benefits of a Neighbourhood Watch
Neighbourhood participation gives you a stronger, united voice in civic life and joins us in shared neighbourhood projects.
Neighbourhood Watch is:
- Knowing what to do when crime or other emergencies occur
- Finding ways to make your community safer
- Promoting awareness of others who may need help or advice
- Deters criminal activity
- Creates a greater sense of security and reduces fear of crime
- Builds bonds with neighbours. People look out for one another and this stimulates neighbourhood awareness
- Reduces the risk of becoming a crime victim and in turn reduces the physical, financial and psychological costs of crime
- Instructs residents on how to observe and report suspicious activities in your community
- Offers continued education and resource contact for victims of crime
- Addresses quality of life issues and mutual interests in our community
- Works collaboratively with other civic and community activities
Other Benefits include:
- Assistance rendered for late arrival at home if requested
- Follow-up by patrol car on reports of undesirable or suspicious elements in or around a member’s property
- Extra surveillance if SRNW is informed that a member’s property is unattended for any period of time
- Surveillance cameras installed through SRNW and IPSS collaboration. Monitored by IPSS Control Room
- Reduced rates on safety and security related products/services from various providers/suppliers
- Builds bonds with neighbours. People look out for one another and this stimulates neighbourhood awareness
- Dedicated Whatsapp security and emergency group
- SRNW Website which is regularly updated with crime information
- SRNW Facebook page shares information relevant to the community on all fronts (crime tips, road safety, current crime trends etc.)
- SMS notification of incidents or issues of immediate importance to members
- Notification to members about lost or found pets via our various social media platforms
Reducing crime
Watches are in regular contact with the local police so minor problems can be dealt with before they develop. Being part of an active community helps deter criminals.
Watches can give you crime prevention and home safety advice.
If you are covered by a Watch, you are less likely to be a victim of burglary, which is why insurance companies sometimes offer discounts on home contents insurance if you are covered by a Watch.
Support for Watch members
Residential signboards
We mount residential signboards on homes for members who are covered by the SRNW. This is a visible sign to criminals and shows that the community is working together to prevent crime.
House numbering
We paint individual house numbers on the road surfaces for quick identification and rapid EMS response time.
Street names
We upgrade/refurbish street name signs in the community in order for EMS services to easily identify street names, which increases response times.
Access to crime trends
We send regular communications with the latest crime trends
We provide our members with information about current criminal activities and the modus operandi they use to gain access to our homes and the community at large. We try to determine the crime trends and patterns of our area so that the members can be better prepared and warned about possible incidents or suspicious persons. Crime prevention advice is therefore more efficiently circulated throughout the community, enabling a better understanding of practical steps required to tackle local problems in their infancy.
Getting involved in a Neighbourhood Watch scheme enables you to make a positive and proactive contribution towards crime prevention. It provides you with a way to report crimes and share details of any suspicious activity with your neighbours and the police.
Crime prevention tips
We produce regular newsletters containing crime prevention tips and community safety advice.
Regular public meetings are also held with focus on current areas of concern and with regards to crime trends. The Watch arranges for subject matter experts to do presentations on the selected topics and also try to negotiate special rates on security products/services for members.
These meetings are regularly attended by SAPS and our local security companies and also provide an opportunity to meet neighbours and get feedback on criminal activity in Salt Rock.
The Watch works closely with Security Companies in the area as well as with SAPS to ensure cooperation and thereby provide effective service and response times.
This platform allows members to address additional issues of community concern such as Fire Prevention, First Aid, City Planning, etc.
Having a safe, secure, informed neighbourhood that communicates effectively is a helpful way to maintain a happy and peaceful home life.
Why a Neighborhood Watch?
Weekly reports have proven that the SRNW has had a major impact on reducing crime levels in the area.
Although belonging to a Neighbourhood Watch scheme does not guarantee that the area is crime-free, criminals are deterred from committing crimes in areas where they know there is an active Neighbourhood Watch and that people could be watching.
Our prominent Neighbourhood Watch signs posted on the gates/walls of the members and on the outskirts of the neighbourhood show that we are not an easy target and that the community has taken the necessary steps to deter crime. The signs also show criminals that they are probably being watched and that their untoward activities are being reported to the police and/or security companies. Our surveillance cameras also assist with this prevention strategy.