Cllr Roy Gerstner – Community Activist

Hello Neighbours, 
It’s been so hot over the last month. We’ve already shared tips on how to stay safe and be a good neighbour in the heat on our social channels. We’ve also got practical advice from ERA in this edition.  Other highlights this month include: 

• More powers for the police to tackle vehicle-related antisocial behaviour (ASB)

• Watch our ASB week webinar with Resolve

• Community spotlight on Trelewis and Bedlinog

Vehicle-related ASB seizures coming into force – the Crime & Policing Act

The measures remove the requirement for police officers to give a warning before seizing a motor vehicle used in an antisocial manner. There is also a change in the law to shorten the time between vehicles being seized by the police, and when they can be disposed of. You can read more about this here. 

Concerned about a vacant property in your neighbourhood?

Empty properties can become vulnerable to antisocial behaviour, vandalism and unauthorised access, creating concern for residents. Neighbourhood Watch is working in partnership with Ad Hoc Property Management to help members raise concerns about vacant buildings in their area. If you know of a vacant property causing concern, find out more and report it here. – Ad.

Antisocial behaviour awareness week webinar: reporting ASB

Reporting antisocial behaviour (ASB) is everyone’s business, but it isn’t always easy. It can really help to know where and how to report it. We hosted a webinar with Resolve ASB on the topic to help provide some practical advice. If you could not join the event, you can watch the recording of it here.

Blog – It’s everyone’s business: working together to tackle antisocial behaviour

Our head of membership and community engagement, Cheryl Spruce has written a blog about why it’s vital that we all take responsibility for reporting antisocial behaviour. She shares her view that it is also  important that we build community connections and partnerships to tackle issues effectively. Read her blog here

Protect your motorhome

Don’t give thieves the opportunity to operate, VanGuardian provides a visual deterrent and delivers a powerful 113dB+ alarm that activates on contact, exposing a thief, forcing them to retreat and alerting you in time to take action – protecting your campervan and keeping you safe inside. All in a simple end-user fit, find out more here.

Protect your home in warm weather

Warm weather can lead to increased antisocial behaviour and opportunistic burglaries within our communities. The home security experts at ERA share some tips to help you protect your property and support safer neighbourhoods throughout the summer season, from securing doors and windows to planning for holidays. Read more here.
Learn about ERA’s range of smart home security solutions, visit https://eraprotect.com –

Social media policy and guidance

A lot of our members and groups use social media, and we encourage people to share crime prevention and community advice. We thought it would be a good time to remind everyone that we have a comprehensive policy and a shorter guide for members and groups using social media as representatives of Neighbourhood Watch. Neighbourhood Watch is a trademarked name and logo, so breaches of policy or inappropriate behaviour may result in disciplinary action. Find the policy and short guide here.

The Co-op Local Community Fund is looking for applicants

Co-op is still looking for applications in some communities across the UK. Use their postcode checker to find out if you can still apply. Applications in these areas close at midnight on Friday 10 July 2026. Check if your area or scheme is eligible here. 

Neighbourhood Watch Lottery Summer Prize Draw

On Saturday 29 August, one lucky lottery supporter will win a £2,000 luxury holiday, (or choose a £2,000 cash alternative instead). 50% of all tickets sold from our page go to the Neighbourhood Watch Network. Buying a ticket through One Lottery means that we can continue to support the network throughout England and Wales. Find out more and buy tickets here. 

Please find below summaries of the latest news from our courts in June – click on each headline to be taken to our website to read the full story. 

Fenland:

Abuser jailed for controlling partner

Man handed ten-year order for hare coursing activity

Jail for Christmas Day arsonist

Prison officer jailed for relationship with inmate

You can find more news, upcoming events and updates from your local teams here.
Or you can follow us on Facebook at ‘Policing Fenland’ for more updates.

An update from Mr. Matt Page, informing of two events he and his team would like to return to Whittlesey Next Year….s

Seeking support from WTC….which we at the Projects Committee did indeed support…..and will recommend to the full council.

The return of Armed Forces Day event 2027

I’m writing to provide an update on our plans for the proposed reservoir in the Fens. 

Since the close of our phase three consultation in December, we’ve been making great progress in developing our plans. This includes:  

• reviewing all consultation feedback and publishing our feedback summary report; 

• commencing the latest round of site surveys and ground investigations, which will help inform our design and our environmental assessments; and 

• ongoing development of our construction, traffic and transport plans.  

As our understanding of the project has matured and we continue to refine the design, we now plan to hold our next phase of consultation in mid 2027 and will be preparing to submit an application for development consent in late 2028.  

We will continue to work closely with local communities, landowners and other stakeholders in shaping our plans for the reservoir, helping to ensure we deliver lasting benefits for people, nature and water. 

If you have any questions in the meantime, please do not hesitate to get in touch at info@fensreservoir.co.uk.

Kind regards.
Damien Thomas.
Major Projects – Relationship Lead.

Click Here For Fenland Citizen

Two illegal vehicles have been seized during patrols by the police.

One motorbike rider in Whittlesey was stopped by Fenland rural officers earlier last week after being discovered to have no licence or insurance. This resulted in the vehicle being seized.
In addition to this, the team also stopped a car in Whittlesey due to information that it may have been driving on cloned number plates.

We are appealing for information and sightings after a digger was stolen in Whittlesey. 

The yellow vehicle was taken from a building site in Sorrell Avenue at about 11.45pm yesterday (5 July). 

Sometimes these vehicle thefts can be a pre-cursor to ATM ram raids, and we therefore urge residents to be vigilant and report any suspicious behaviour to us immediately on 999. 

Anyone with information can contact the force online or via 101 quoting 35/50735/26: https://www.cambs.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/cor/tell-us-about-existing-case-report/.