Neighbourhood watch groups in London

London is divided into 32 boroughs throughout inner and outer parts of the capital. Although each borough has a council that deals with various community and resident matters, there are numerous Neighbourhood Watch organizations that operate either in different areas or specifically in certain streets or blocks of flats. Here are a few examples:

·         Ridley Avenue Residents Association & Neighbourhood Watch

·         Hillingdon Neighbourhood Watch

·         Newham Neighbourhood Watch Association

·         Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association

·         Chelmsford & Derby Neighbourhood Watch

·         Clapham Town Neighbourhood Watch

·         Galloway Road Neighbourhood Watch

How to be a good neighbour?

Whether you have new neighbours moving in or you are the one who is moving, these few tips will help you to establish a better relationship with your neighbours.

Consider your neighbours’ lifestyle.

Try to find out as much information as possible about their habits, profession,free time,etc. Additionally, you can inform them about yours and suggest contact you if they are not happy with some of your habits,pets,children,etc.

Be aware of shared walls.

It is a good idea to keep TVs,speakers and other loud electronics away from shared walls.

Control your pets.

Always make sure your pets do not bother neighbours in any way.

Alert your neighbours to parties.

If you are going to hold a big and noisy party at home, make sure to warn your neighbours about that. Or better- invite them too!

Keep your garden tidy.

Weeds in your yard may spread into your neighbour’s yard, so mow your lawn regularly and keep your flowers, trees and bushes trimmed appropriately.

Practice parking etiquette.

Be sure not to block anyone’s access or make them have to pull out of a very tight spot.

Neighbours' issues and solving them

   

It would be impossible to list all possible neighbours’ disputes as they widely depend on every individual, but here are some of the most common reasons that come in the way between neighbours:

·         Noise

·         Parking space

·         Trees

·         Boundaries, fences and walls

·         Amenities which are shared

·         CCTV

·         Children

·         Hedges

  Dealing with neighbours’ disputes

It is always advisable to try to solve neighbours’ disputes peacefully,however, that is not always possible. If you already have tried talking and negotiating with your neighbours, but unsuccessfully, you may try the following options:

·         Contact the landlord
·         Call the police
·         Contact the environmental health department
·         Contact the planning department
·         Consult a solicitor/take court action
·         Moving home

Featured in BBC Radio

NeighbourBlog was featured in this morning's BBC radio Tees mid-morning programme.

NeighbourBlog's creator Vivek was invited to share his thoughts on how to be a good neighbour.
We've discovered that the most annoying things about our neighbours usually are:

• Barking dogs and pet mess
• Noise
• Rubbish
• Occupied parking space
• Ball games 

The discussion can be concluded by an old saying “Step into other’s shoes”. It can be easily applied when talking about neighbours, too. For a moment try to remember all the situations, when your neighbours completely got onto your nerves, then think whether you have not caused any discomfort and distress to your neighbours (unless they have told you clearly). We get enough stress at work and outside the home environment, so why not to create more harmony with the people we live close by.

Have anything to add? We would love to hear from you! Drop us a line to admin@neighbourblog.com

It is worth mentioning that NeighbourBlog’s advertisement has been visible on 100 London buses for the last few months.Due to this successful bus advertising campaign NeighbourBlog received a lot of interest not only from inner, but also outer London areas.As a result, it was decided to include 13 outer London postcodes, such as AL, HA, IG and so on.

     What is more, in the nearest future users will be able to use NeighbourBlog on the go as mobile and tablet versions are going to be introduced.

Dealing with noisy neighbours

If you have noisy neighbours, here are some tips how to deal with them. London Council Richmond Upon Thames suggests the following:

1. It is always best to try to solve these kind of problems informally. 

2. However, if that is not possible to do, then it is advisable to start keeping a diary of residential nuisance. 

3.What is more, contact your neighbours again about the matter, advising them of your intentions to make a formal complaint if the matter is not resolved informally. This may be best done by letter.

4.Finally, if the problem continues, make a complaint to the Council, and send in your initial diary sheets.

Once you have made a formal complaint to the Council, you will be asked to complete and submit ongoing diaries of the noise while your complaint is investigated. Investigations may be carried out until the officer is satisfied that there is, or is not, a statutory noise nuisance. If appropriate, the officer may take enforcement action against the person(s) causing the noise.

More information can be found on the website:

http://www.richmond.gov.uk/noisy_neighbours

'Ghost woman' captured on camera in Putney cemetery by Sutton man

Do you believe in ghosts?

Ghosts do not just come out at night as this picture appears to show.

John Finch, from Sutton, was in Putney Vale Cemetery last week when he felt cold air rush across the back of his neck and head.

He immediately turned around and took several photographs, one of which reveals what Mr Finch claims is a spooky spectre.

He said: "It's possibly a woman in a gown which appears completely transparent, and you can see how close it was.

"The picture is a genuine mobile phone picture. None of our family have every seen nor believed in anything like this before."

Click this link to read full article

http://www.wandsworthguardian.co.uk/news/10522509._Ghost_woman__captured_on_camera_in_cemetery/

How safe is your area?: The most dangerous London's streets

                            

STREETS in the West End are the most dangerous in the capital, while one neighbourhood in Bromley, south-east London, did not have a single robbery in a year.
New ward-by-ward police data show more than 20,000 crimes were committed in the West End in the 12 months to April.
The central London shopping and theatre district was also the scene of 247 street robberies - the fourth most in 625 wards.
It was only topped by three of the capital's poorest areas. Stratford and New Town in Newham, east London, had 300 muggings, followed by East Walworth (266) and Camberwell Green (263), both in Southwark in the south of the city.

After the West End, overall crime was highest in other central London areas popular with visitors: St James's (15,283 offences in total); Holborn and Covent Garden (6,289); Bloomsbury (4,816) and Camden Town with Primrose Hill (4,612).

Safe suburbs

The safest areas in the capital tended to be leafy, quiet suburbs towards the edge of the capital. In Bromley, the Darwin ward saw no street robberies at all, followed by nearby Shortlands with just three muggings. The total number of offences in both neighbourhoods averaged less than one a day.
Kingston upon Thames also had some of the safest neighbourhoods in London, with four wards among the lowest ten for both muggings and overall crime. Old Malden in the south-west London borough tallied the least offences in the whole of London: only 326 in a year.

Other safe suburbs were Sutton South and Lower Morden, both in south London.
Croydon's Fairfield, however, were among the ten most dangerous with 4,135 crimes and 231 muggings.
Unsurprisingly, areas notorious for their run-down council estates also made the top ten for street robberies. Tottenham Green in north London, where a police officer was killed in riots on the Broadwater Farm estate in 1985, came ninth with 222 muggings.
Stonebridge in Brent, north-west London, was in tenth place with 209 robberies. It was the scene of a triple family murder over a drug row on the Stonebridge estate last year, as well as the double murder of seven-year-old Toni-Ann Byfield and her drug dealer dad in 2003.
Police said they were carrying out "a raft of initiatives and targeted operations" to cut down on street crime. In the 12 months to April, muggings rose by 16%, but the increase rate has since declined by 2%, a spokesman said.

STREET ROBBERY

Highest wards
Newham / Stratford and New Town 300
Southwark / East Walworth 266
Southwark / Camberwell Green 263
Westminster / West End 247
Lambeth / Coldharbour 235
Lewisham / Lewisham Central 233
Croydon / Fairfield 231
Westminster / St James's 230
Haringey / Tottenham Green 222
Brent / Stonebridge 209

Lowest wards

Kingston upon Thames / Coombe Hill 6
Merton / Lower Morden 6
Sutton / Sutton South 6
Kingston upon Thames / Coombe Vale 5
Richmond upon Thames / Teddington 5
Kingston upon Thames / Berrylands 4
Kingston upon Thames / Chessington North and Hook 4
Bromley / Shortlands 3
Havering / Emerson Park 3
Bromley / Darwin 0

TOTAL CRIME

Highest wards

Westminster / West End 20379
Westminster / St James's 15283
Camden / Holborn and Covent Garden 6289
Camden / Bloomsbury 4816
Camden / Camden Town with Primrose Hill 4612
Kingston upon Thames / Grove 4575
Islington / St Mary's 4316
Newham / Stratford and New Town 4257
Hillingdon / Heathrow Villages 4164
Croydon / Fairfield 4135

Lowest wards

Kingston upon Thames / St James 458
Harrow / Headstone North 445
Sutton / Belmont 433
Kingston upon Thames / Alexandra 414
Kingston upon Thames / Coombe Vale 411
Sutton / Sutton South 405
Merton / Lower Morden 404
Bromley / Darwin 339
Bromley / Shortlands 337
Kingston upon Thames / Old Malden 326