New neighbourhood watch group to back up the police

At an inaugural meeting held at Scarborough’s Eastfield Police Station a unanimous decision was taken to launch a new organisation to help bolster police resources.

The Ryedale, Scarborough, Whitby and Filey Neighbourhood Watch Association incorporating Rural Watch will be chaired by Terry Wallis.

He said: “The establishment of this new association is against a background of heavy demands being made upon our police service resources and the potential that in common with many other police services, we may face potential declines in officer numbers.

“With the advent of Citizens in Policing, there is an increasing trend towards more emphasis on support from within communities to support the police in its fight against crime.

“In this part of North Yorkshire, we have been reviewing how best our Area Lead Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinators could come together to become more effective.

“The focus of the new association is to be on the need for consolidation to support North Yorkshire Police in times of limited police officer resources against increasing demands being on them, bearing in mind that our county is the largest in England.

“We will facilitate in this part of the county a dedicated two-way community cessaging service/Neighbourhood Watch channel between our co-ordinators and the police.

“And it will also provide a single point of contact for information such as brochures, street signs, window stickers etc.”