West Kent Police have appointed a new Liaison Officer for the Neighbourhood Watch schemes in the area. Leila Hughes, who comes from Maidstone, has taken over from Eric Baldock who has moved permanently into the role of crime reduction officer.

Leila’s role is to develop and support the activities of Neighbourhood Watch schemes to help combat local crime and disorder. This will include keeping schemes updated about criminal activity in their area; passing on to police officers information from scheme members about suspicious events and promoting crime and disorder reduction messages.

One area where Leila will be focussing her efforts is on encouraging residents in communities where Neighbourhood Watch schemes do not yet exist to form schemes and take advantage of the benefits on offer; such as reduced insurance premiums.

Talking of her appointment Leila said: “Having only just started in the job I am spending a lot of time learning what is involved. But I am very pleased to be working in a role that could make a difference to people and perhaps offer them reassurance about safety and security.”

Anyone who would like to contact Leila to discuss setting up a Neighbourhood Watch scheme or to get further information about Neighbourhood Watch can ring her on 01892 502159.