Rise in burglaries in Brighouse leads to police crackdown

Over the last 18 months there has been a pronounced spike in the number of burglaries from properties in Brighouse, Rastrick and Hipperholme.

This is despite a significant fall in crime overall, both locally and nationally, since 2010.

Mr Whittaker said: “The increase in burglaries across Brighouse, Rastrick and Hipperholme over recent months has been extremely worrying.

“Along with local councillors, I have been working with our local police to tackle this trend and I am pleased to see that the proactive measures which the police have taken appear to be having an impact.

“Our local officers have secured additional resources to increase patrols on the Calderdale border.

“This has provided a deterrent to the organised gangs who tend to steal cars during burglaries and then take these across to the Bradford area.

“Residents across Brighouse will be aware of this trend and I know that this is very worrying for everybody in the community.

“Although the trend now appears to be falling due to the proactive approach of the police, this is still of huge concern and we need to continue to work together to tackle this issue.”

Neighbourhood Inspector Rachel Bairstow said: “We have seen an increase in offences of burglary over the last few months in Brighouse and Rastrick where properties were broken in to and various items and vehicles stolen.

“A number of these reported offences, have been “attempt” burglaries. In these cases a crime is still recorded, even though the burglary has not been committed and no property has been stolen. This can be seen as a positive, where the work by our teams and the efforts of the public to protect their property has undermined those targeting people’s homes.

“Patrols across the area have been enhanced with additional specialist resources supporting our local teams to detect, intercept and prevent offenders from committing offences in and around Calderdale.

“It can take just seconds for someone to get into your home and steal your belongings but people can make it more difficult for them by removing opportunities a burglar may look for.

“Simply locking doors, shutting windows and not leaving valuables on display can make a huge difference in putting off a thief.

“Leave a light on or use a timer, leave a radio on and if you have an alarm use it. These easy steps can all significantly reduce the chances of being a victim of burglary.”

“Our crime prevention officers are there to support members of the public to prevent crime and can be contacted via 101 or by contacting the neighbourhood team.”

In addition to working alongside the police, Mr Whittaker and councillors have also raised this issue directly with the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Mark Burns-Williamson.

Local residents are invited to attend a public meeting to discuss the issue on Friday, March 9 at 6.30pm at Brighouse Civic Hall.