Policing and Housewatch

The village is in the Western Division of the Dorset Constabulary and is linked from west and east by the main A352 road to the Divisional Station of Dorchester and County Police Headquarters at Winfrith. A benefit of this geographical fact is that Broadmayne enjoys a transient presence of policemen and their vehicles passing through – the envy of many other communities. The local policing is undertaken by a rural community constable who is equipped with personal radio and 4x4 motor vehicle; he also covers six other villages and hamlets. The officer has a close working knowledge of ‘his patch’ and builds up a rapport with residents by attending public meetings, visiting villagers and directing resources to solve localised crime and anti-social problems.

Crime in Broadmayne village is relatively low. It consists of infrequent house burglaries and thefts from motor vehicles; however, vandalism and general nuisance behaviour do occur and this affects the quality of life in the community, particularly for the elderly. Traffic volume and speed through the narrow Main Street is a constant worry to residents and users alike; plans for a by-pass to minimise this problem were scrapped in recent years and cottages now occupy the once-reserved land.

In 1992, a number of Broadmayne parishioners sought to form Homewatch Schemes to promote security awareness and encourage closer liaison between the public and the Police. Enthusiastic volunteers, ‘co-ordinators’, came forward to represent their neighbours; the Police kept in contact with these persons, updating them on developments and exploring different ways in which each could help one another. In 1995 this scheme was expanded and pamphlets were circulated to every householder in areas not covered by a co-ordinator. A network table was devised whereby information passed from whatever source to a main co-ordinator could then be passed via the telephone from person to person in a chain reaction throughout the village. The result: twenty one co-ordinators covering most of the Broadmayne roads and lanes. Apart from crime intelligence, the network can provide a rapid advisory service in the event of, perhaps, a natural disaster in the village; fortunately, to date it has not been used in this way. Over this period, inter-parish facsimile messages were sent by the police to the village for onward circulation. In 1998, this method of circulating intelligence information was upgraded – in the age of technology, the ‘Ringmaster’ system arrived. Any police message is automatically sent by computer, via the telephone, simultaneously to numerous co-ordinators countywide.

Bi-monthly meetings are held at Dorchester Police Station at which co-ordinators have an opportunity to learn of police actions and crime trends and to meet socially with other volunteers. Concerns about particular problems can be aired and tackled jointly between the parishioners and police.

Richard Noble