BROADSTONE NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH

The 14th Annual General Meeting was held at Broadstone Middle School on 10th May. It was attended by approximately 50 Contacts and guests. After the Chairman, Mr Denis Phillips had opened the meeting and welcomed the guests, apologies for absence were received from Mr John Noyes, Mr Hall, Mr Ted Heywood, Kathy Emery, Mr Richard Horwood, Mr John Hewer, Mr John Topp and Mr Bott.

Mr Geoff Lees proposed that the Minutes of the previous A.G.M. be approved and Mr Jack Horwood seconded the proposal. The proposal was approved unanimously.

Under matters arising from the minutes, Mr John Gibbons raised a question concerning the future of the former Fairlight Hotel site. He pointed out that it had been occupied by squatters and that there had been a fire in the building. Furthermore the rear access to the site was not secure. Mr Nick Wyer informed the meeting that the owners of the property were aware of the situation, but that it was not known what their plans were. A question was raised as to why the DVLA were still not enforcing the completion of transfer documents when a car was sold. The answer appeared to be that the huge numbers of transactions rendered it impossible and that even if the Seller complied with the regulations often the buyer did not. Very frustrating for the police.

There was a question as to whether the police had acted on information received about a car apparently abandoned in Wynne Close with people sleeping rough in it. There was considerable discussion as to whether an offence had been committed or not. Probably it had, but not a criminal one.

It was noted that the Corfe Mullen HBO had been presented with a mobile phone by their Neighbourhood Watch Group. This was worthy of consideration as the answerphone at Gravel Hill would soon be switched off.

The Secretary, Babs Benstead, reported that the year had been quite successful. Crime figures were down yet again. Details were provided showing which criminal activities had increased and which had decreased. She reported that we were fortunate that no MAJOR crimes had taken place in Broadstone and that the fear of crime was greater than crime itself. The Secretary stressed the importance of reporting suspicious circumstances and or crimes, by telephone to 552099 and not to Nick Wyer's answerphone. The membership of the Watch was stated to be 2660 with 229 groups and 25 Coordinators. It was proving very difficult to recruit new members. A leaflet drop had been disappointing, and only door to door canvassing seemed to produce results. The Watch had acted quickly when a rumour circulated that we were about to lose our HBO. We are glad to have had the assurance from Supt. Chris Dennis that we would retain our HBO, although because of staff shortages he may have to help out in other areas.

The Secretary asked about the state of Ringmaster. This elicited an apology and a promise that Ringmaster 2000 would be up and running soon.

At this stage in the proceedings we were treated to a display of fire-fighting. A chip pan was deliberately overheated in a display trailer provided by Hill House Hammond and the resulting blaze was extinguished correctly. We were also shown what would happen if an attempt was made to use a cup of water to put the flames out. Not to be recommended.

The Chairman made a very brief report with the laconic statement that we had survived another year. He extended a warm welcome to the guest speakers and stressed the commitment of the Watch to combining resources with the Borough of Poole's Housing Management Services and their Community Alarm operation and also to Fire and Rescue Services, whose demonstration we had just witnessed. He congratulated Hill House Hammond on recognising the benefits of close cooperation with the Watch and other parties working together for the benefit of the community.

The Chairman reflected that it had been a very good year for him personally, during which he had received one of the highest honours that the Borough could bestow. The John Jay Shield was displayed at the meeting and the Chairman generously stated that he had only really received it on behalf of the Watch.

The Treasurer, Mr Jim Grove, in his valedictory report, explained that income was up and expenditure was down. The average donation remained at £0.50 per member and that as no capital purchases had been made during the year, a surplus of £3087.78 was being carried forward.

The following officers were elected for the coming year. The Chairman having agreed to carry out his duties for a further year, was proposed by Mr Bob Kent and seconded by Mr Bob Smee. Elected on a unanimous show of hands.

Mr David Williams was elected to the new post of Vice Chairman. He was proposed by Chris Hewitt and seconded by Mr Robert Frew.

The Secretary, Babs Benstead, who also confirmed her willingness to stand for a further year, was proposed by J. Symonds and seconded by Mr John Gibbons. Mrs Anne Jefferies continues as Minute Secretary.

Mr Roger Jefferies offered to serve as Treasurer, and having been proposed by Pat Fellowes and seconded by Mr Bob Kent, was duly elected.

The remainder of the Committee were re-elected en bloc.

The Chairman allowed a lengthy question and answer session on Toast Rack Parking in particular, and parking around Broadstone in general. Councillor Annette Brooke brought the meeting up to date with various points and stated that the Residents' Association would be seeking to choose a preferred solution from a reduced number of options.

Mr David Williams reported on the latest activities of the Dorset Watch Liaison Group and expressed the wish that the Broadstone Watch would continue to be affiliated to it. He then thanked the Officers for all their hard work during the year.

Mr Norman Pitkin of Community Alarms was the first of our guest speakers. He offered a free demonstration of their MONITORED Alarm/Smoke Detection System which can be obtained for £4.27 (incl. VAT) per week.

Mr Alan Morgan of the Fire & Rescue Service highlighted the most vulnerable group to fire in the home. If you are over 60 and don't have a smoke alarm and cook, then you are in the group. You might benefit from free offers of smoke alarms and discounts on home insurance offered by Hill House Hammond.

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