Facebook group formed reduce crime in the village

Marston Against Crime was formed by Jeanette Little in June after numerous criminal and suspicious incidents in the village. Since the Facebook group was started on 1st June, over 560 people have joined.

Around 50 members attended the first public meeting, held at the Marston Moretaine Social Club. This was a chance to discuss concerns, talk through possible solutions and to hear from organisations that could help.

Jeanette was moved to set up Marston Against Crime after seeing many posts on Facebook saying that people’s homes had been broken into. She told the meeting that she experienced a break in around eight years ago. She added that its impact is still felt today. She said:

“The only way that we are going to be able to fight crime is to get together as a community.

“To achieve this we need to be more proactive and to work alongside the police to make it difficult for anyone targeting out village.”

Various options and schemes were discussed during the meeting, such as Street Watch and Neighbourhood Watch.

Street Watch

Bedfordshire’s first Street Watch scheme set up was in Marston Moretaine in May 2010. The purpose of Street Watch is:

  • To prevent crime by increasing visibility and maintaining a caring and cohesive community
  • To increase feelings of safety by promoting a sense of security and community spirit
  • To assist the police by promoting effective communication and the prompt reporting of suspicious activity

Neighbourhood Watch

Neighbourhood Watch claims to be the largest crime prevention movement in England and Wales. Its website says that when setting up a scheme the more residents that want to get involved, the more successful a scheme could be.

However, not everyone in a street or neighbourhood needs to join, as long as there are enough residents to keep an eye out for each other’s properties.

Bedfordshire Police
Nobody from the police attended the meeting; the village’s PCSO was on leave and a training day meant that no one else was available.

MJ Electrical, who provide security solutions, has given MAC a discount code. To get the code, to find out more about MAC, and to volunteer contact Jeanette via the Facebook page.

Jeanette said:

“We all have busy lives, but if we are more vigilant, report every incident to the police and volunteer for patrols, we will then have the foundations in place to build a safer future for our families, our village and our homes.”