Home » We Don't Buy Crime - SmartWater Roll out

WE DON’T BUY CRIME - SMARTWATER INITIATIVE

A very well attended meeting of the Council in January received a presentation from West Mercia Police and SmartWater Ltd about a crime prevention initiative which is supported by the Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion. 

 

The scheme provides local Councils with a grant to partially fund the purchase and distribution of SmartWater property marking kits and prominent signage advertising the widespread use of the kits in a particular area. 

 

SmartWater kits are manufactured by a Telford company and each kit contains a unique combination of rare earth metals that can be analysed and identified to trace the legal owner of the marked equipment.  This enables the police to identify the true owner of items that they believe to be stolen and to use this information to prosecute thieves.

 

The PCC grant scheme requires that SmartWater kits are used in at least 70% of the homes in an area which is the level of saturation found to successfully deter acquisitive crimes such as burglary.  The remaining cost (75% of the cost of the kits) is borne by the Parish Council.  It is hoped that the roll out of this scheme will help to reassure residents following an unusual spate of burglaries in the village.

 

The total cost of the scheme will be £17,155.59 of which £6,675.17 is funded by the Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion.  The cost of the kits is heavily discounted by the manufacturer due to the size of the order. The scheme roll out will be supported by volunteers from the Parish Council and Neighbourhood Watch Group who will be available to help with registration and demonstrate how to mark your property.

 

The kits will be distributed to residents of the parish free of charge upon presentation of proof of residency (such as a recent bill) and registered to the relevant address.  Only one kit will be issued per property and residents will be asked to sign to acknowledge they have received a kit.  There will be a series of events to distribute the kits and representatives from the Parish Council, the West Mercia Police and SmartWater Ltd will be available to explain how the product is used. 

 

It is hoped that there will be a strong take-up of the kits and that anybody already using SmartWater also lets us know that their property is covered as this increases the saturation level of the scheme.  The SmartWater kits usually retail at £19.99 so this is an excellent opportunity to protect your property free of charge.

 

The events planned in March are as follows:

 

Monday 11 March 2019        Bayston Hill Memorial Hall                                   2 – 4pm and 6 – 8pm

Tuesday 12 March 2019       Coffee in the Lounge – Christchurch                   10am – 12pm

Saturday16 March 2019       Bayston Hill Library                                              10am – 12:30pm

Friday 22 March 2019                   Methodist Church Hall                                  9 – 12pm and 3 – 7pm

 

Kits will be issued on a first come first serve basis but if there are any leftover they will be available from the Parish Office or at the end of the Annual Parish Meeting on 20 May 2019 in the Memorial Hall.