Did you know?

• Over the past three years, the rate of domestic burglary has decreased across the county and in England and Wales as a whole. The risk of being burgled is about half of what it was 10 years ago.
• Properties with little security are about 15 times more likely to be burgled that those with good security.
• Most burglaries are opportunistic. The burglar sees an opportunity to enter a house through a window or door that has been left open, or they see an easy way to break into the property.

What we are doing to tackle domestic burglary

• In South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse, Anchor Small Repairs service provides support and assistance to elderly and vulnerable people, by 'target hardening' their homes through upgrading security arrangements
• In West Oxfordshire and Cherwell, a high-profile Safer Homes Initiative has been run, focusing on vulnerable neighbourhoods and offering general home security advice to help reduce the number of burglaries
• As students are often victims of domestic burglary, Oxford Safer Communities Partnership works with student unions and college security officers to advise students on crime prevention.

What can you do to stay safe?

Use the following simple steps to help reduce the risk of burglary:

• Ensure all doors and windows are locked when you go out.
• Fit deadlocks to external doors and key-operated locks to windows.
• Don't hide spare keys in obvious places like outside the front door, or in the garage or shed.
• Don't leave ladders, tools or any other items lying around that could be used to break into your house.
• Before going away, ask a neighbour to open your curtains in the morning and close them at night, turn on lights and take in the post.