COUNTRY LIFE
More than a
Countrywatch !
Policing the rural Islands countryside could be a daunting task ; covering miles of farmland , rough tracks and isolated buildings , whilst winning the trust and support for the rural community . Not so for Sergeant Mark Lyth , who takes it calmly in his stride and heads up the Island ’ s ‘ County Watch ’ team . Based at Yarmouth Harbour , Country Watch is enjoying five years of success . Launched as a natural ‘ next step ’ from the County ’ s Neighbourhood Policing programme , that saw the introduction of PCSO ’ s , “ putting police back into the community ”, it created a communication link for the wider rural and isolated population that were suffering from theft , anti-social behaviour and other crimes . Joining from the mainland and being the Sergeant at Yarmouth Police Station , one of Sgt Lyth ’ s inherited jobs , was to police the Isle of Wight Hunt . Coming into the job with no strong views on either side , it turned out that Sgt Lyth was the ideal candidate to be involved and having been introduced to the hunt fraternity , it wasn ’ t long before the anti-hunt introduced themselves to him ! With such extreme views the two sides will never agree , but by listening , understanding peoples passions and through good communication , Sgt . Lyth has built up trust and a positive rapport with both sides that help keep the equilibrium . Subtle policing can often work far more effectively than going in heavy handed and through the use of trail cameras ( still pictured , mobile cameras ),
the County Watch team have resolved many crimes . A recent example of this was , anti-social behaviour in woodlands , where young people were lighting fires and leaving rubbish . After members of the public complained , trail cameras were put up and within two weeks , over 500 images of the offenders were taken . The team visited the culprits , showing them the images and gave them the chance to clear up the mess . This
Natural Enterprise
We are leading 8 walks for this year ’ s Isle of Wight Walking Festival . Full details will be in our next newsletter , but as it starts early in the month , here are the details of the first two :
Sunday May 1 - Eastern Yar Walk and Pooh stick challenge : 10.30am , Newchurch car park . The title says it all !
Monday May 2 - Parkhurst Pootle : 2pm , Forest Car Park . A short family walk to spot squirrels .
Walks have a suggested donation of £ 2 per person . Full details can be found in the IWWF Brochure , at www . gifttonature . org . uk .
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