Luton volunteers are police’s ‘eyes and ears’ who will bring a sense of security

A new Street Watch scheme in under way for Warden Hill in Luton, with patrols aiming to promote a sense of security and community spirit.

Due to Covid the intended launch stalled somewhat, but finally took place last Tuesday (February 8) at Warden Hill Community Centre in North Luton.

Street Watch is a community-led initiative where groups made up of volunteers from local communities make a difference by carrying out targeted street patrols around local neighbourhood and report things, like anti-social behaviour, vandalism and suspicious behaviour, to the policing team, without getting involved.

Juliet Wright, force-wide scheme coordinator at Bedfordshire Police said: “The Street Watch volunteers will be carrying out targeted patrols in areas where low level crime and anti-social behaviour has been reported.

“These patrols help to promote a sense of security and community spirit and also provides reassurance for vulnerable members in the community.

“Bedfordshire Police welcome our new volunteers to Street Watch.”

Inspector Cray Birch added: “Members of Street Watch group are the eyes and ears of a community. They provide an invaluable point of contact between police and local people so that local issues can be quickly dealt with.

“Street Watch extends the ethos of the police and community working together to make our streets safer and enhance residents’ quality of life.”

Dr Mohammad Alramahi is one of the volunteers and scheme coordinator. He said: “I am super delighted that Street Watch has finally arrived in Luton - setting up this initiative was quite dependent on securing the minimum number of volunteers who went through vetting process which take time. We started the process in early 2020 but due to Covid, things have taken a lot longer to set up the group.

“Street Watch is one of the examples articulating how we contribute to the wellbeing and prosperity of our local community - this initiative is about local residents promoting good citizenship and supporting a better neighbourhood by providing visible reassurance and appropriately engage in local issues that matter most to our community

“As a scheme coordinator, my role entails keeping a volunteer list, providing advice, guidance and support, and regularly speaking with my local policing team.”

If would like further information or to join Street Watch, please email the Watch Schemes Team on: [email protected].

> Let’s keep the positivity going! A recent Luton News front page saw Luton hit back after a poll claimed it was the third worst town in the UK. The Luton News has always been at the forefront of championing the community, but following this survey we decided to ask readers to come forward with their upbeat stories and examples of why we should be proud of the town. In our paper you will see our We Love Luton logo to highlight all that’s good about our town. Why not email your examples of why we should be proud of Luton and its people to us via [email protected]. We’re keen to highlight local attractions, plus examples of the good work being carried out for the community by individuals, organisations, businesses or charities. Let’s give Luton the love it deserves... and we’d love to receive your positive stories about Dunstable too!