A local resident has proposed plans for two security vehicles to patrol the Kingswood Estate in Garston, due to the “high” crime rate in the area.
Scott Flanagan, owner of Sovereign Mobile Security, suggested a patrol to run for a period of 10 to 12 hours a night, seven days a week.
The service would be funded by residents on a monthly basis, and if half of the residents chipped in, it would cost £1 a day per person.
Resident Chad McIntosh said: “There’s been so many van break-ins since I’ve been there. My mum and dad’s house got burgled. There was an incident two months ago where a van was cut open. The people looked on their Ring doorbell and saw people standing outside the door with baseball bats. My car has been broken into while it was on the drive. There’s no street lighting after 12pm either. There’s lots of things going on; it’s quite bad really.”
Scott met with Watford councillor Tim Williams and former chairman of Kingswood Residents’ Association John Swain to discuss the plans.
Cllr Williams said: “It is an interesting crime deterrent suggestion for the area, albeit at early stages, and we advised Scott Flanagan that he would need to get various stakeholders involved in order to progress the idea, including liaising with the local police, local residents and local businesses. We suggested it would be a good idea to perhaps call upon residents in Kingswood to sound them out on his private security proposal to see if there is an interest.
“I understand that there are a number of areas of London that have already gone down this route. The additional monthly charge for residents that he is proposing might not go down well, but that’s for the residents themselves to decide, weighing up their fear of crime in the area and the additional expense.
“Of course, naturally we all would like greater patrols and greater policing to occur in Hertfordshire, in Watford and of course in Kingswood, as there is currently a real perceived fear of crime.”
Herts Police have been contacted for comment.
What do you think of the proposals for a nightly security patrol? Send us your thoughts at newsroom@mynewsmag.co.uk
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