Thieves on the streets

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Local Police officers have sent out a warning about a new way of carrying out thefts on the street.

The first member of a gang approaches somebody they think is a stranger to an area. They start a conversation under the pretext of asking for directions, recommendations for a restaurant or some other reasonable question.

Once the conversation has started, other members of the gang arrive. They claim to be Police officers. Sometimes they show fake identification. They might ask to see the first fraudster’s identification but they may just give an excuse to examine the victim’s bag, purse or wallet.

Once whatever they’re inspecting is handed back, everybody goes on their way. It’s only later the victim realises that money, bank cards or valuables have been taken from whatever the thieves ‘examined’.

The advice from the Police is that if anybody claims to be a Police officer, especially one in plain clothes, we should always ask to see identification.

Apart from that, it’s worth remembering:

  • Never, ever, give your passwords or the PIN for your bank cards to anybody. No genuine Police officer will ask for those.
  • No Police officer will ever ask you to withdraw money from a bank account.
  • No Police officer will ever ask you to transfer money to what they describe as a ‘safe’ bank account.

It’s often older people who are at risk of these sorts of crimes because they have grown up in a society where fraud was less frequent. It’s important to help everybody understand that there are thieves who are very good at convincing us that they’re from a trustworthy organisation.

It’s a sad reflection on today’s society, but it’s necessary to adopt an attitude of ‘trust nobody until they’re proven to be trustworthy’.

Preventing vehicle crime

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There has been a recent spate of thefts from cars and thefts of cars in Kings Heath and Moseley. The Police suggested a few precautions that we can take to reduce the risk of these sorts of crimes:

Break-ins to cars in Moseley involved thieves smashing windows to get at electronic equipment left in the cars overnight. The advice is never to leave satnavs, mobile phones, laptops or anything else of value in your car overnight.

You may also have heard about a couple of instances where cars were taken by force from their owners (carjackings). Advice has also been offered to minimise the risk of being the victim of this sort of crime. When you’ve parked your car and you’re going back to it, be aware of who is in the area as you approach it. Have the key ready in your hand so that you can open the door and get in quickly. Once in, lock the doors.

Overall, reported crime is reducing but these are things we can all do to help bring it down further.

Big Lunch neighbourhood get-together 2017

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The Big Lunch is a simple idea from the Eden Project: that as many people as possible across the UK have lunch with their neighbours annually on a Sunday in June in a simple act of community, friendship and fun. This year the mass participation day is 18 June 2017. Read more at edenproject.com.

There are several groups in Kings Heath who get together with their neighbours for this annual event. It’s a great way to get to know your neighbours, make new friends and build community spirit.

You can keep life simple and hold the lunch in someone’s garden or head off to the local park.

If you want to close your street, you will have to get in touch with the local District Engineer’s Department. Contact Sajid Khan at Sajid.Khan@birmingham.gov.uk. You will be advised whether it is possible to close the street and if so what you have to do to get approval from the Council.

This includes getting public liability insurance, informing the three emergency services and consulting with your local councillors.

Wherever you decide you hold your local neighbourhood Big Lunch, it is a really worthwhile, enjoyable event.

Food stall in Kings Heath village square 15 April 2017

Helping the homeless

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Members of the local Sikh community have set up an occasional food stall in memory of George of Peacock Road. George was well-known in the neighbourhood and died suddenly earlier this year.

His family and friends have run two food stalls so far in the village square in March with more planned over the coming weeks. They prepare and offer cooked food with the overall aim of helping economically disadvantaged people. Those who would otherwise go hungry are given free food. Those who can afford it are asked to make a donation. All donations will be used to fund future food stalls and to provide clothing and other necessities for local homeless people.

The project is part of the Sikh principle of Seva which involves performing a service to the local community for the benefit of everybody.

Preventing burglaries

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A recent meeting involving residents and representatives from West Midlands Police heard that the rate of burglaries in Kings Heath has fallen over the past month or so. However, residents were advised of the need to take action to protect themselves and their property:

  • If you’re going out for the evening, leave at least one light on. If possible, leave several lights on timers so they can be seen being switched on and off.
  • Don’t leave keys – especially car keys – within reach of your front door. Thieves have used long hooks to reach keys out of houses through letterboxes.
  • When you go out, make sure all doors and windows are secured. Criminals look for unoccupied homes with open windows and it’s amazing to see how small a window can be used by an adult to get into a house.
  • Think about how easy it is to get to the back of your house. If you have a side gate, put a bolt on it.
  • If you have tools in your garden shed, make sure the shed is locked when the tools aren’t being used. A spade or a fork can be used to break into a house.
  • Think about registering valuable items (wide-screen televisions, computers, jewellery, etc.) with the UK National Property Register.
  • If you’ve got foliage that screens your front doors or windows from the street, think about cutting it back so that anybody at the front of your house can be seen easily.
  • Think about outside security lighting so that anybody approaching your house will be very noticeable from the street.

If you do see anything suspicious, call 101 and tell the Police.

If a crime is actually in progress, call 999 immediately.

Kings Heath Residents’ Forum gets results

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Two recent actions by Kings Heath Residents Forum (KHRF) members have achieved results.

BT Openreach premises in Howard Road East

A considerable amount of litter and fallen leaves had collected both on the frontage of the building and along the pavement side of the fence. A KHRF member contacted BT, explained that a Spring Clean was being organised in various sites and by various groups across Kings Heath. Would BT help by cleaning up the front of the premises in Howard Road East? Admittedly it’s a while since the Great British Spring Clean but the clean up outside the building has been completed.

Commercial waste on the High Street

Complaints were made about an accumulation of commercial waste behind retail premises on the High Street. It should have been in a closed container so that it could not be blown out into the street. The complaint was passed to the Environmental Health Regulation and Enforcement department and a Waste Enforcement Team visited the retailer. A member of the team explained the retailer’s legal responsibilities which hopefully means that this particular source of wind-blown litter has been stopped.

Thanks to Kate Smith of BT Openreach and the Waste Enforcement Team of Birmingham City Council for dealing with these issues so quickly.