Village can give national lessons

By Giancarlo Rinaldi
BBC Scotland news website
South of Scotland reporter

The village of Greenhill could be an example for Scotland

A village with just 17 houses has shown Scotland the way forward for what Neighbourhood Watch can achieve.

Greenhill, near Lockerbie, is where former insurance worker Brian Smith started out as a co-ordinator for the local scheme about 16 years ago.

Now he holds the post as secretary of the Association of Scottish Neighbourhood Watches (AoSNW).

He believes his district of Annandale and Eskdale can provide a template for the rest of the country.

When they set out around 1990, they were one of a tiny number of watch groups in the area.

"We went from a handful of schemes to something like 250," said Mr Smith.

They operate across the five areas covered by Lockerbie, Annan, Langholm, Moffat and Gretna police stations.

A "cascade" telephone system means that within just 10 phone calls Mr Smith can get the word out to 90 schemes in his Lockerbie zone.

We draw together the best expertise in Scotland to answer questions and make people feel part of the overall community Brian Smith AoSNW Secretary Some of your views

Although it is a low crime area, there can be problems with people coming off the nearby M74 motorway causing spates of burglaries.

Farm machinery, quad bikes and the likes are also sometimes the target of thefts.

"A lot of it is prevention," said Mr Smith. "We put out alerts for bogus callers.

"There was an incident in Peebles recently - we got that information and we alerted the whole of Annandale and Eskdale.

"It is not just about crime itself - it is about being concerned for your neighbourhood."

The AoSNW held its AGM on 8 April and hopes to encourage new groups to start up or existing watch schemes to register with them.

Rural Annandale and Eskdale presents its own challenges

Very few demands are made of its member groups.

"All we ask is that when we operate the cascade system they use it and if they see anything they let the police now," said Mr Smith.

"The whole object of the association is to draw all these threads together - that it is somewhere you can go to for an answer."

Mr Smith, and others like him, have a wealth of experience to offer to fledgling groups across the country.

The national network also offers another vital service to rural watch schemes like the one in Greenhill and other more remote parts of the country.

"We draw together the best expertise in Scotland to answer questions and make people feel part of the overall community instead of feeling - as they are at the moment - isolated," said Mr Smith.

He added that the feeling of involvement was important to every Neighbourhood Watch scheme across the nation.

Then the rest of Scotland might be able to follow the example set by Annandale and Eskdale and see the number of groups grow to such impressive levels.