Police have helped residents in Matlock Bath protect themselves from crime by providing them with free SmartWater packs. Operation Illuminate saw Safer Neighbourhood officers visiting homes in Matlock Bath and advising people to boost their security. It came after a rise in the number of shed and garage break-ins in the area over the last month.
Other items on offer during the visit, on Tuesday, May 21, included shed alarms, security lights and door chimes, all available at a reduced cost.
PC Chad Fullerton, from Matlock Bath, Cromford and Bonsall Safer Neighbourhood Team, led the operation. He said: “People living in Matlock Bath have spoken to us about their concerns around burglaries so we wanted to offer them a cheap but effective way of protecting their property. We had a great response during the visit and it was great to see so many people taking home security seriously.
“Burglars target property they think will be easy to steal so hopefully by taking up this extra security, people can avoid becoming victims of crime.”
SmartWater is a UV (ultraviolet) paste with a unique code that is dabbed onto valuable items. If those items are stolen and later recovered, their owner can be easily traced by police and reunited with their belongings. The kits, along with a variety of other crime prevention items, were available as part of Operation Illuminate, an ongoing security campaign for Derbyshire Dales residents.
The campaign is led by Derbyshire Dales Community Safety Partnership, which includes the police and Derbyshire Dales District Council. Council Leader Councillor Lewis Rose OBE, who is also chairman of the Community Safety Partnership, said: “We were delighted with the response to this latest in a series of SmartWater campaigns. Although the Derbyshire Dales is statistically one of the safest places to live in the whole of the UK, it is important that our communities feel safe too.”
