VARIOUS USEFUL INFORMATION

Thames Valley Police no longer accept bikes that have been found by a member of the public or take reports of lost bikes.  If a person has had their bike stolen this needs to be reported online to http://www.police.uk or by calling 101.  A lost or stolen bike needs to be reported with all details and serial numbers online to www.bikeregister.com.   It is important for all bike owners to register their bikes on this website, as besides helping to get your bike back if stolen and found abandoned, it also helps with finding out your identity if you are involved in an accident on your bike.  TVP have access to search this site so they can check if a stolen bike has been found providing the owner knows the serial number.  The finder of a bike can go to this website to check if the bike has been reported stolen and if it has it needs to be reported to the Police.  If the found bike has not been recorded on www.bikeregister.com as lost or stolen, the finder needs to make reasonable attempts to locate the true owner via social media pages such as Lost and Found in our area.   Best practice for finders of bikes would be to hold on to them for a period of 4 weeks to give the owner chance to come forward but after this period the finder can decide how to dispose of the bike and would suggest giving to the Community Furniture Project.

On the website www.police.uk if you enter your postcode you are able to find out details of your Neighbourhood Policing Team and crimes that have occurred in your area.  You can now also report a crime, road traffic incident, lost/stolen/found items or vehicles and a missing person. All personal details sent using this service will be kept safe and are used for policing purposes only.

If you do not have a Neighbourhood Watch scheme in your road and can set one up Angela can forward you more details.  A scheme can be anything from 5 properties upwards and the main role of a Coordinator is to circulate the Alerts on crimes and scams to your neighbours either via email or posting on a WhatsApp or Facebook Group for your area. You will receive free signs, stickers, leaflets and discounts for your neighbours.

Please contact Angela Money BEM at ajmy5m7@gmail.com or by phoning Newbury 40866 / 07774962641 and she will be able to send you forms to complete to become a Coordinator in your road or give you a call to answer any queries that you may have.

Trading Standards within the Public Protection Partnership (PPP) are looking to both refresh and energise the existing No Cold Calling Zones (NCCZ) and promote new Zones.  A small number of existing Zones are also Neighbourhood Watch areas; the two have much in common as NCCZ will reduce the incidence of cold calling which in itself can lead to criminal activity. If you would like to find out how to set up a scheme, please contact Jessica Ryall-Spoor of Trading Standards to receive promotional material, door stickers, street signs, etc and she will advise how best to take this forward.  Her email address is:  Jessica.Ryall-Spoor@westberks.gov.uk

You can go into the website:  www.haveibeenpwned (it is spelt like this) and check if your email address has been hacked into.

To report a scam call received on your iPhone, text the word ‘call’ followed by the phone number to 7726. On an Android phone, text the word ‘call’ to 7726, and you’ll then receive a message asking you for the scam number.

WhatsApp scam calls can be reported by opening the WhatsApp chat with the dodgy phone number and tapping 'block'. You can report the contact by tapping 'report contact' and 'block'.

If you have been scammed, call your bank immediately using the number on the back of your bank card and report it to www.actionfraud.police.uk/reportscam  or phone 0300 123 2040.

If you get a suspicious looking email, you can report it to the National Cyber Security Centre by forwarding it to report@phishing.gov.uk.  Remember not to click on any links within these emails.

Angela Money BEM

Area Representative - West Berkshire Neighbourhood Watch