At this time of year, most of us are out and about more or busy in the garden, and we often make things far too easy for thieves and burglars. If you are not sure whether your home security is good enough, you can contact your Neighbourhood Policing Team for advice on protecting your home.
Some suggestions for improving your home’s defences:
- Make sure your front wall is no more than 1 metre high, so a burglar could be noticed from the street. Walls and fences at the rear of the property should be higher, with spiky bushes planted as a deterrent to climbing.
- Metal side and driveway gates are a good choice because they allow intruders to be seen. Make sure your side gates are high enough to deter climbing.
- Gravel driveways and paths make a silent approach difficult.
- Store wheelie bins or other potential climbing aids behind locked gates, so burglars can’t climb up on them. Lock ladders away out of sight or chain them to an anchor.
- Reinforce door frames with metal strips, called ‘London’ and ‘Birmingham’ bars to prevent intruders kicking the door in.
- Fit window locks to all windows and remember to use them when you are out during the day or in the garden, and on downstairs windows at night.
- Don’t forget to secure your garage with good mortice locks on side and rear doors and proper purpose-made locks on the main door.
Burglars are opportunists: get into the habit of keeping an eye out when you are at home for passers-by who look too interested in your neighbours’ houses if they are out or away, and ask them to do the same for you. If it looks suspicious, report it!
