Becoming a victim of burglary can have a long-lasting physical and emotional impact.
Having a stranger enter your home can leave you feeling insecure - on average it can take seven months for you to feel secure in your home again.
Remaining vigilant and having good security can reduce the chance of your home being burgled. In many cases, burglars gain entry through a window being left open or a door being left unlocked.
However, if the worst was to happen, it is important to think about how you would deal with the situation.
How you react to a burglar entering your home is a personal choice and might depend on the situation - for example, whether you're alone at the time or not. You may choose to make a noise and hope it scares the burglar off, or keep quiet and hope the burglar doesn't come in the room you're in.
Despite many people now having a phone in their bedroom, it is still a good idea to bring your mobile phone to bed with you. If someone does break in, you can use it to call the police even if the burglar has disconnected your home phone.
If you have any information about offenders or see something suspicious, call us on 101, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111. In an emergency dial 999.
I have been burgled - what should I do?
If you have been burgled we urge you to consider the following tips from our Crime Scene Investigation team:
» Phone the police immediately on 101 or in an emergency call 999
» Where possible minimise what you touch, especially near the point of entry or items that you believe may have been touched by the offenders
» If you suspect the offender is still inside the property - do not enter, advise the police of this when you ring. Confronting the offender can place you in immediate danger
» If it is practical wait at a neighbour's house until the police arrive. If you do need to enter the property; try to locate to one area and try to minimise movement around the house
» Fingerprints, DNA and footwear marks may not be visible so try to avoid walking on smooth, shiny flooring and touching anything that the offender may have touched or handled
» If you find something that you suspect may have been used in the burglary as it was not there previously, point this out to the police
» Preserving evidence is vital. If the item is outside cover the item with a box or something similar to shield it from the elements until the police arrive. Do not touch the item. If you see blood, try to cover this without touching it
» Remember not all items have forensic value. The police are professionally trained to know what items can be used to obtain forensic evidence, do not be upset if a particular item that you think may contain forensic value, is dismissed by police. The most common types of forensic evidence found at crime scenes are fingerprints, DNA and footwear marks.
Suspicious activity in your area? Report it.
Have you seen any suspicious activity in your neighbourhood? Call Wiltshire Police on 101 if you see any of the following:
» Anything suspicious or anyone acting suspicious in your neighbourhood
» Unknown or unexpected doorstep traders - description and dates are vital pieces of information
» Unusual vehicles - vehicle description, registration numbers and direction of travel are vital pieces of information
» Many offenders use high performance vehicles. Please be mindful if you see such a vehicle driving around your area.
If you have any information about offenders or see something suspicious, call us on 101, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111. In an emergency dial 999.
Community Tasking Team
The Community Tasking Team (CTT) is a new dedicated resource that will not only tackle burglary, but all priority crimes. The CTTs main focus at the moment is on improving our dwelling burglary processes and clamping down on offenders.
The CTT will be working closely with existing local community policing teams, and with specialist Crime Scene Investigators (CSI), to ensure the biggest possible impact is made on prolific offenders who blight the lives of our local communities.
