This week I am delighted to be able to share that the Dorset Partnership Against Rural Crime (DPARC), which I chair, has launched an information leaflet which gives hints and tips on crime prevention, especially for those living in rural areas.

Dorset is a proudly rural county, and from the outset all the members of DPARC, wanted to do something to help those agricultural and other isolated communities wanted to do something to help agricultural and other isolated rural communities feel safer and help prevent crime. 

The information leaflet gives proactive advice on how to help keep farms, land and machinery safe, with key police-approved information and advice on how to prevent residents from becoming a victim of rural crime.

DPARC was set-up in 2022 to bring together partner agencies such as the local councils, Dorset Police, the National Farmers Union, the Country Land and Business Association, NFU Mutual and Cornish Mutual amongst others, to work together, and share knowledge and best practice to better support Dorset’s rural communities.

Other work of the partnership includes improvements in data sharing between agencies relating to fly-tipping, the establishment of a new evidence-gathering role for fly-tipping, the creation of resources to promote prevention information, joint operations to target fly-tipping and waste crime, and campaigns to increase the awareness of responsibilities of waste disposal.

The launch of the leaflet comes as an addition to the Country Watch website which was introduced by DPARC in September 2022. The Country Watch website is a ‘one-stop rural resource centre’ for all things related to rural crime in Dorset and was launched after the partnership received feedback from the rural community that they were spending a lot of time on different websites trying to find out information when it came to rural issues. The site includes information on how to report different rural crimes, updates on how Dorset Police are tackling rural crime and a news section with updates from DPARC members.

Dorset Police continue to take robust action to tackle rural crime across Dorset, and you would have seen just a few weeks ago the Dorset Police Rural Crime Team took part in a regional week of action to prevent, tackle, and drive down rural crime. Throughout the week the team visited previous victims of crime and distributed ‘SelectaDNA’ kits to prevent theft of agricultural equipment. The team also used their engagement van to provide a police presence in rural communities, provided a talk as part of a livestock-worrying event in Dorchester, and worked with partners to tackle issues such as fly-tipping, scrap metal theft and illegal waste carriers.

The new rural crime prevention leaflet is attached to this email or available to download from the Country Watch website here.

David Sidwick

Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner