Crews tackle house fire at West Parade in Fenton

Damage to the house at West Parade in Fenton.

FIREFIGHTERS have tackled a blaze at a house in Fenton.

Crews were called to a property at West Parade at around 1.25pm

Six engines including two from Hanley, two from Longton, one from Newcastle, and one from Ashley attended.

Two main jets and two hose reel jets were in use and four firefighters were wearing breathing apparatus.

A Staffordshire Fire and Rescue spokesman said an investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of the incident.

No occupants are believed to have been in the building at the time.

Source; http://www.stokesentinel.co.uk

Business Owners Beware!

If you are being contacted by companies demanding payment for some advertising publishing they say you agreed to several months ago (especially if the related publication is for charity) you may be suffering from what is essentially a scam call. (Usually booklet or wallchart)

SCAM: National Crime Prevention Booklet

THEIR NOW IMPERSONATING POLICE OFFICERS

I had a call today from a man who said :

” Hello sir I am calling on behalf of the Police”, “We are calling just to say thank you for supporting our latest campaign which I am pleased to say has been a success”

When I asked which campaign he said “The National Crime Prevention Booklet”,  So I asked him the name of his company and he said “I am calling from The Police”, I asked his name he said “PC Dawson”, when I asked where exactly was he based he said “The Editorial Department of Cheshire Metropolitan Police”

I said that sounded odd and asked him for his phone number and he said: 0845 556 7800

I then said If I call that number would I get through to him, he said “No you will get someone else” he then put the phone down.

I rang the number out of curiosity and its a made up number and does not exist.

SO BEWARE – They are now even pretending to be the police.

http://www.adscams.co.uk/scam-national-crime-prevention-booklet

Bogus callers

Hearing an unexpected knock on the door anytime of the day or night can be an uncomfortable experience.

It can be even more worrying, when you open the door, and the person who’s standing there is a complete stranger to you.

We’ve all opened the door to someone from a utility company or a door step seller, but how do you know these people are who they say they are?

Be aware of who you answer the door to. Bogus callers sometimes work in pairs so make sure that when you go to answer the front door, the back door is locked to stop anybody getting in.

If you do let someone into your home, don’t leave them on their own. 

Did you know?

• In 4% of burglaries, thieves use a false pretence to gain entry to a property 

Most people who call at your home will be from a reputable company and will call for a genuine reason. Some people turn up at your door unannounced, with the intention of tricking their way into your home. They are known as ‘distraction burglars’ or ‘bogus callers’. They’ve also been known to try and con money out of you and steal any valuables that you have in your property.

Bogus callers come in all shapes and sizes, varying from smartly dressed ‘business’ people pretending to be from a utility company, a doorstep seller, a tradesman or someone collecting for bogus charities.

If you are living with housemates, elderly or young relatives, make sure they know what to do if they suspect a bogus caller is at the door. Let them know that they don’t have to let someone in if they don’t want to.  

Do I have to let someone in if they’re at my door?

If you are in any doubt, keep them out. Don’t get pressured into doing something that you are unhappy with (that includes letting people into your home).

If the caller wants to come in and you feel uncomfortable, you can ask them to call back at a later date when someone will be at home with you. A genuine caller won’t mind calling back at a more convenient time when someone else can be at home.

How can I check whether the caller at my front door is genuine or not?

Ask for the person’s identification card and check it carefully. If you’re still not happy, ask the caller to wait outside while you call the company they say they’re from.

If you still have the person’s ID card, don’t use the number that appears on there, as the number could be fake. Find a number from the phone book, or off an old bill and call the company that way. Ask the company if this person is a member of staff, and if they’re meant to be in your area at this time. Someone from a genuine company won’t mind you doing this, and if you ask them to come back at a later time they should be more than willing to do so.

If you are suspicious of anyone calling at your house, then please contact the police using the non-emergency number 101. if someone refuses to leave your doorway and continues to try and enter your home, or you feel threatened or intimidates then call the police on 999. By alerting the police you could prevent someone else from falling for a similar scam.

Remember, before you answer the door, follow the ‘Lock, Stop, Chain and Check’ procedure.

Car fire and explosion rocks Welsh Row in Nantwich

A car which exploded and burst into flames on a Nantwich car park could be suspicious, police said.

The fire and blast happened on the rough ground car park on St Anne’s Lane, off Welsh Row.

Police and fire crews are at the scene, but it’s believed no one was hurt in the incident (Sunday February 16).

These pictures were sent in by Nantwichnews readers close to the scene as fire crews cordoned off the area.

Many people in bars and restaurants along Welsh Row and residents living nearby heard the explosion.

One eyewitness told us on Twitter: “I heard explosions go off, then looked outside and a large fire broke out on St Anne’s car park. Fire brigade got there in time.”

Another tweeted: “Possibly car involved as car horn was going off for at least 15 minutes. Hope no one is hurt!”

A spokesman for Nantwich Police said: “It’s a car fire which has caused the explosion.

“We’re not sure at this stage what has caused it, but it will be treated as suspicious until we have evidence to suggest otherwise.

“It involved a stationary vehicle on the St Anne’s Lane car park near the wooded area. No one was in the vehicle and there are no injuries.”

(pics courtesy of Nantwichnews readers)

Source; http://nantwich-news.co.uk

Cheshire PCC to axe 70 police staff jobs but freeze council tax

Cheshire PCC John Dwyer has pledged to freeze council tax for policing in the county – but it set to axe 70 police staff jobs.

Ex Crewe & Nantwich councillor Mr Dwyer revealed his plans in his second police budget since being elected as Police & Crime Commissioner.

The force needs to make £34 million in savings over the next years, despite already cutting £35 million from its budget since 2010.

So in 2014/15, the total budget for policing across the county will be just short of £190 million.

Mr Dwyer admits there will be a drop in officer numbers through retirement and leavers, but will recruit 50 new officers.

“This will mean we will not face a problem further down the line when we have no young in service officers coming up through the ranks,” he said.

“But unfortunately, there will also be a loss of 70 police staff posts.

“I have focused on my key priorities of reducing crime and supporting victims.

“It has not been an easy budget as we are still facing cuts in funding from Government.

“But I have also been mindful that the public of Cheshire are also facing difficult financial challenges, many have not received a pay rise in the last year and so I am not going to increase the amount they pay for policing.”

The Commissioner plans to pilot a new neighbourhood policing model, working with local communities to manage crime reduction and support victims.

Another priority is dealing with cyber crime with criminals using new technology to commit offences like hacking data, fraud, selling illegal drugs and child sexual exploitation.

Mr Dwyer added: “The continuing financial challenges cannot be underestimated.

“The root and branch review has identified a clear way forward to achieving the required savings while maintaining and where possible improving services.

“I have set this budget to try, as far as possible, to meet the policing needs of the people of Cheshire without passing any costs directly on to them.”

The Police & Crime Panel will consider his proposals on February 7.

Source; http://nantwich-news.co.uk

The evolution of crime categories since December 2010

When Police.uk started back in January 2011,  the UK had precisely the following number of criminal offences and ASB – 1,470 – which were categorised in the following way on www.police.uk ;

Burglary – 9

Robbery – 4

Violent – 144

Vehicle – 5

Other – 1293

ASB – 15

So out of a maximum potential of 1,470, breaking it down into 6 categories was not actually a very big step towards granularity even when the need for anonymisation was taken into account. Clearly,  the “Other” category clearly did not tell you very much at all and contained a significant number of crimes that required no categorical or geospatial anonymity at all like bicycle theft. Crime data should be understood to exist in 3 subsets – about the crime, the offender and the victim. What we have here on www.ukcrimestats.com is limited information about the crime.

(The United States incidentally has over 5,000 types of criminal offences and arguably have long lost count).

So I thought it would be helpful to paste up a couple of images of the evolution of crime categories that we use which are passed down to us by our rival, the tax-funded monopoly (because it unquestionably has first use and discriminatory access to the data), www.police.uk .

Evolution of Crime Categories

Anyway, as we then anticipated, there have been a number of new categories created as illustrated above in response to public and commercial interest.

In more detail, here they are.

Anti-Social Behaviour (from Dec 10)

Robbery (from Dec 10)

Burglary (from Dec 10)

Vehicle (from Dec 10)

Violent and Sexual Offences (from Dec 10)

Other Crime (From Dec 10)

Theft – Shoplifting (from Sept 11)

Drugs (from Sept 11)

Criminal Damage and Arson (from Sept 11)

Public Disorder and Weapons (from Sept 11   to May 2013)

Theft – Other (from Dec 10)

Bike Theft (from May 13)

Theft From the Person (from May 13)

Possession of Weapons (from May 13)

Public Order (from May 13)

Source; http://ukcrimestats.com 

Nantwich Police warn residents after spate of shed burglaries

Police in Nantwich are warning homeowners in the town to be alert after a number of sheds were broken into overnight.

The allotments on Welshman’s Lane were particularly targeted by thieves, officers say.

And another shed was broken into on the Cronkinson Farm Estate in Stapeley.

Residents are urged to keep property secure and valuable items out of sight.

“Ensure all sheds and outbuildings are secure and please report anything suspicious,” said Nantwich PCSO Nicholas Jarvis.

If you have any information please contact the police on 101.

Source; http://nantwich-news.co.uk