May 2023 Bulletin

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Drawing competition

If you do one thing this year, please encourage at least one primary school child to enter our Drawing Competition where the 12 winners will receive a $100 prize, but more importantly, their drawing will be the feature image for one of the months in our 2024 Calendar!

The winners’ prizes will be awarded at our Awards Ceremony on Saturday, 28 October 23, at the Launceston Country Club where friends and family will be invited to come along to help celebrate the occasion.

The theme for the drawings is Safe Neighbourhoods – download an Entry Form.

Please help us to make this competition – and our 2024 Calendar, an outstanding success.

Neighbourhood Watch awards

Speaking about awards, many members of Neighbourhood Watch in Tasmania have provided outstanding community service and it is important that they get recognition from our organisation. We have three levels of Awards, Certificate of Appreciation; President’s Certificate of Commendation; and Honorary Life Membership.

These awards can only happen if members take the time to send through a nomination for someone they believe is deserving of recognition. Nominations close on 30 June 23, so please don’t delay. It is not complicated, just email through a few words to admin@nhwtas.org.au about who, and why you are nominating them, and we will work with you to finalise the nomination. It can’t get much easier than that!

The NHW Annual General Meeting (AGM) is to be held at 11am on Saturday, 28 October 23 at the Country Club, Prospect. If you don’t like meetings, our AGM only goes for about 30 minutes. As you have read in the previous article, 2023 will be even better because we will also award the prizes to our primary school winners in our Calendar Drawing Competition. Mark the time and date in your diary to make this ceremony the best one yet, and help give the morning tea the recognition it deserves as well!

This event is designed to be a celebration and the one opportunity where NHW members from around the state can come together to share some fellowship and be stimulated by the activities of their peers; and the students who participated in the Calendar Drawing Competition,

CWACs at Sorell and Northgate

Cuppa with a Cop (CWAC) is a Neighbourhood Watch flagship event that we are always keen to deliver in partnership with the business community. Congratulations to Sarah Pienig, our Sorell Coordinator, who recently hosted a very successful CWAC at Sorell Plaza; and to our Greater Glenorchy Coordinator, Peter Vogelsanger, who hosted a CWAC at Northgate.

What to do?

From time to time, we may all have thought about the possibility of What do I do if suddenly I come upon a serious event, such as a traffic crash or witness a violent incident in progress? Neighbourhood Watch is said to have been borne out of the stabbing murder of Kitty Genovese in New York city in 1964 when it was reported that none of the many bystanders intervened. The phenomenon of not doing anything in situations like this has been termed the bystander effect.

Michael Dyson, a former Tasmania Police Senior Sergeant who now works internationally as a law enforcement specialist, has shared the following research that could guide our actions if we are ever in such an unfortunate situation.

Call for help: The first thing to do in any emergency is to understand the situation and call for help. Dial 000 and provide as much information as possible about the situation.

Assess the situation: Take a quick but careful look at the situation and assess whether it is safe for you to intervene. If there is an immediate danger to you or others, prioritise your own safety and wait for trained professionals to arrive. Avoid putting your life at genuine risk.

Provide first aid: If you have the skills and knowledge to provide first aid, do so to the best of your abilities. Even basic first aid skills can make a significant difference in an emergency.

Ask for help from others: If other people are present, ask for their help. Do not assume that someone else will act, as the bystander effect may impact them.

Stay with the victim: If someone is injured or in distress, stay with them until help arrives. Offer comfort and reassurance and provide any assistance that you can.

Remember that acting in an emergency can be challenging, and it is important to prioritise your safety and well-being while assisting others. You cannot do the impossible; so under all circumstances, your personal safety and survival is the most important thing you should be concerned with. Providing help to others is a genuine privilege if you have the physical ability to do so yet survive the situation yourself.

Personal safety and security

Although we all hope we never have to use the emergency phone number 000 to call the Ambulance, Police or Fire Brigade, it is helpful to know that this call goes to a national call centre and there will be important information you will be asked to provide so that the emergency service you need can be sent to the right place without delay.

This is what will happen as soon as your 000 call is connected.

A recorded voice will say, You have dialled emergency triple zero – your call is being connected.
An operator may then ask you what state and town you are calling from?
The operator will ask you whether you require Police, Fire or Ambulance?
You will then be connected to the service in Tasmania you have asked for.
The operator of that service may then ask you:
• Your street name?
• Your house number?
• A description of what has happened?
• Your name?
• Your phone number?
• Other relevant details about what has happened, and the number of people involved?
If you are calling an ambulance, you may also be asked:
• How many people are injured?
• What is their age?
• Are they conscious?
• Are they breathing?
Do not hang up until the operator has told you to.
It is important that you remain as calm as possible and speak as clearly as you can.
If it is not an emergency the correct police number is 131 444.

Flying the flag at Northgate CWAC

NHWA keeping kids safe online

Neighbourhood Watch Australasia (NHWA), in collaboration with the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) has created a series of 30 second Community Service Announcements (CSA) with crime prevention messaging focused on online child exploitation. You can view these CSAs at: https://www.nhwa.com.au/resources/tvc-messages/.

Speaking about NHWA, the April Journal is now available. You can read it online at: https://www.nhwa.com.au/news-media/journal/. But if you want a hard copy, please contact your coordinator who can arrange one for you. These magazines are full of ideas and initiatives from across Australia and New Zealand. If you want to explore things that you can do in your neighbourhood, there is a wealth of reports on successful events that you can copy or use to improvise for your own location. Also, checkout the NHW Tasmania articles inside.

And now for something completely different!

This is an illegal tobacco crop in NSW. The ATO works with other authorities to investigate the production and distribution of illicit tobacco. If you suspect illicit tobacco is being grown in your community it can be reported by phoning 1800 060 062 or use the tip-off form at www.ato.gov.au/tipoff.

Key Dates for 2023

24 May CWAC at Claremont Plaza.
7 June Thank a First Responder Day
30 June Drawing Competition Closes
30 June Nominations for NHW Annual Awards close
14 September RUOK Day
4 October International Coffee with a Cop Day.
16 – 22 October Get Online Week
28 October AGM and Awards Ceremony
6-12 November Neighbourhood Watch/Bunnings Crime Prevention Week.

And in conclusion.

Join NHWT online – it’s free!

“I can’t help everyone – but everyone can help someone!“.
(With thanks to Mark Waterson).

Yours in Neighbourhood Watch
Peter Edwards, President
Good Neighbours Create Safer Communities

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