Christmas

It has been many moons since I last wrote about Christmas in Kingsley and, I suspect,new people have moved into the village and others will have departed. So it might be of interest to those who did not read the original article to be able to compare todays Christmas in Kingsley with how it was sixty odd years ago. 

In those days Kingsley had a school, a shop, a post office and, of course, the dear old Cricketers. It also had a second pub, the New Inn, at the eastern end of the village near Sleaford. As with most villages then and, I suppose to some extent now, the three main institutions which were responsible, in various measure, for village activities were the Church, the pub and the school. This was particularly so at Christmas. Before breaking up for the Christmas holiday the school would have been involved with the Church in putting on the Nativity play which took place in the church and also the Christmas Bazaar both popular events. 

A short while before Christmas, usually on a Friday evening, the Cricketers would be the place to go when it paid out the Thrift Club monies to all whom had been a part of that scheme and taken the opportunity to put a few pounds away for the festive season. 

In general terms people did not decorate their homes and gardens in the same way as today. Decorations were for indoors and, of course, electric lights were not available as they are now. Christmas trees were then lit with small candles which fitted into little holders which clipped to the trees branches. I can't imagine anything like that being sold today, just consider the Health and Safety police, they would have a field day. It is worth saying that I don't ever recall anyone burning down their house as a result candles. 

The tree, as far as our household was concerned was sourced locally. By that I mean it was obtained from either the common or Alice Holt forest. The trees on the common were firs with the large needles and a grey–blue colour. In those days there were a lot of firs all over the common which I guess were self seeders as they had not been planted in any order. The trees in Alice Holt were the finer spruce type with much shorter and many more needles. When I say they were sourced locally, they were actually stolen. It was common practice for villagers to go out and cut a tree down, often under the cover of darkness, having made their selection in daylight. Given that we had a village policeman living in the community, this matter had to be dealt with,with some care. The local newspapers would begin announcing, several weeks before Christmas, that tree patrols had begun in Alice Holt forest and anyone caught stealing trees would face the full force of the law. I, from quite a young age, took it upon myself to be the provider of our family tree. I preferred the forest type of spruce so I would take the opportunity of selecting my tree whilst wandering in the woods with a pair of binoculars and notebook consistent with a bird watching trip. Having selected the tree I would wait until there was a wet and windy evening. Then at around eight o'clock I would take a circuitous route to the trees location, cut it down and return by a different route. Never, over many years, did I ever encounter one of the much publicised tree patrols. or, indeed the policeman.

Christmas eve in Kingsley was usually spent in the Cricketers and followed by the midnight service in The Old Church, as it was then commonly known. I refer, of course, to St Nicolas church just up from Bakers corner. People walked to the church in those days and having been in the pub for the evening many of the walkers were in merry mood and conversation was energetic and covered a wide range of topics. The merriment was replicated during the church service and it would become fairly clear which of the congregation had availed themselves of the fine ales for which the area was noted. Alton in those days was a centre of brewing and the home of Courage ales. The cricketer contingent were always the loudest singers and took to the task with great gusto. I don't suppose the vicar ever encountered such dedicated songsters at any other time of the year. It was also the case that many of those singers would not be seen in a church again until the next Christmas eve save for the odd Christening, marriage or funeral !! 

The Cricketers would also be a popular destination at Christmas day lunch time and many a Christmas lunch was tarnished by the twin evils of an over long visit and rather too much festive spirit. Boxing day was the day for walking and many villagers would go for a stroll on that day. 

We didn't have anything like the consumer goodies that are available today and money was, to say the least, scarce but they were good days and people made their own pleasures and life was generally kinder, simpler and safer. All that remains is to wish all who read this offering a very happy Christmas and prosperous and peaceful New Year. 

October Crimestoppers

Police are warning motorists to be careful when selling cars following the thefts of several vehicles over the past few months. I wrote about this a while ago when we had a similar spate, so please forgive me for this reminder! Perhaps the end of the summer prompts us to want a change of vehicle; it is easier than cleaning it out sometimes!

Vehicles being offered for sale in a newspaper or magazine, and certainly the internet, can attract people from far and wide to view the car. However, some come with the intention of taking the car without paying.

In one incident, whilst the would-be buyer was being shown around the car, he jumped into the driver’s seat, locked the doors and sped off. In another, during a test drive, the owner and would-be buyer got out at a petrol station to inspect the engine under brighter lights when the thief again jumped in and drove away, and in a third incident, after the test drive and the owner was making a cup of coffee for the man who said he would buy the car, he claimed he had left his phone in the vehicle during the test drive. He then took the owner’s keys supposedly to recover his phone, but drove off with her car. Bear in mind that an insurance company will be reluctant to pay out if a car is stolen in this way.

When selling your vehicle, never let the potential purchaser have the keys unless you are also in the vehicle. If you drive first on a test drive, take the keys out of the ignition until everyone is back in the car and then pass them over.

If you are buying a car privately, if you possibly can, try to avoid meeting anyone in a car park or service station.  It is a potentially safer purchase to see the owner at their home, where the address on the registration document should match up, and the service history is likely to be from a local garage. You also know where the seller is if there is a problem.

Remember, don’t release your vehicle until you have the cleared funds safely in your bank. A cheque should be cleared first, and make sure that a bankers’ draft is genuine – a draft may be guaranteed funds, but not if the draft turns out to be fraudulent or stolen!

Remember to always keep your keys safe. Even a basic car is virtually impossible to steal without the keys to disarm the alarm and immobiliser, so never leave your keys lying around where they could be taken – for example on a bar or table when in a pub, or on your desk at work.

If you’ve information about any crime, please call Crimestoppers on 0800 555111, or log on to www.crimestoppers-uk.org  Your call is free, no one will know you called and you may earn a cash reward. You can also follow me on twitter for regular updates @HantsCrimestopp

Crime in Kingsley

Crime in Kingsley was generally rare and, for the most part, confined to the odd fight or assault caused by visiting soldiers from Bordon camp having topped up on fine ales from the Cricketers. It was normal, in those days, for the troops to walk over Fir Hill from the camp to the pub which was not a very long walk. For a period of time there were large numbers of what were known as Junior Leaders. These were aspiring leaders but were quite young and often got drunk and fought, usually amongst themselves, but occasionally with other customers. In those days they would almost certainly end up nicked! No fines, Police cautions, or Restorative Justice then, simply in front of the Beak and weighed off. Military Police would occasionally patrol the local pubs at turning out time especially if there had been a few incidents recently. They didn’t mess about either, any offender was promptly loaded into their army vehicle and taken away.

As far as the civilian population was concerned it was usually gypsies that were responsible for trouble. It was common then for gypsies to travel around the countryside engaging in the seasonal work that the farms provided. As has been previously mentioned, most work was done by man power, the complex farm machinery of today was yet to be invented. The fields were, therefore, full of toiling bodies. Both men and women joined in the various tasks involved. The gypsies would camp up somewhere in the area, sometimes on ground provided by an individual farmer but often anywhere there was room for their caravans and livestock. Many carried chickens with them,(in specially provided boxes below the floor of the caravans), they almost always had an assortment of dogs and, of course, the horses which pulled the caravans. At the end of the day’s work it was the norm for the menfolk to make their way to the pub. Drink and gypsies always seemed to be a pretty lethal mix and trouble was often the end result. For the most part they confined their fighting to themselves. The extent of this sort of behaviour can be gauged by the fact that many pubs in both town and village displayed large signs telling the world, no travellers or gypsies would either be served or admitted.

Away from the pubs crime was very rare, the good people of Kingsley led blameless lives. The village had its policeman who lived amongst the community. In Kingsley’s case the police house was at the east end of the row of houses that began with Church View, I think, at the west end which was situated on the right hand side as you entered Woodfield. The policeman knew everyone on his patch and what was going on throughout the area. He spent his days in and around the village and was seen, I have no doubt that this contributed to the general good order of the day.

Houses, our own included, were left unlocked, it was unthinkable that anyone would walk in and rob the occupants whilst the property was empty. People didn’t travel as they do now and many of the villagers spent their whole lives in the village thus everybody knew and, I suppose, trusted one another. Strangers would stand out like a sore thumb so, again, I suppose the opportunity to get away with a criminal act would have been unlikely.

During the whole of the time I lived in the village I only recall two incidents involving village people that reached the courts and were one off’s. There may have been others but if there were they passed me by. The first was a straightforward theft which involved a woman. The lady involved was the mother of one of my friends and took the opportunity to relieve Woolworths, in Alton, of some small item. I seem to recall it was a card of buttons. In any event she was caught and found herself in front of the court. I do not intend to reveal the identity of the lady as there might well be relations still residing in the village. I do not recall the sentence which was handed down but I do clearly recall the overwhelming sense of disbelief and indeed shock that my parents and many of our neighbours felt and expressed. Quite simply, in those days, village people just didn’t do that sort of thing.

The other incident which caused a similar amount of shock in the community involved a mate of mine. Although several years older than me, we had spent a lot of time together due, in no small part, to the fact that he kept cage birds and often took me with him when he went to Aldershot market on a Saturday to buy new stock. We went up on the train from the Halt down near the Straits. However, as a teenager, the chap in question got himself a girlfriend, and no doubt, finding the delights of a young lady a greater attraction than cage birds he found himself confronted with the somewhat less delightful prospect of becoming a father. Sadly this caused him to abandon the relationship. It should be remembered that those were the days when, if a girl, "got into trouble" the shame was quite terrible. The rich would have sent their daughter off abroad to avoid scandal. The less well-off had to endure the social stigma that went with the situation as they had nowhere to hide. It is difficult to believe how much times have changed, today young women purposely have a child for the benefits that go with single parenthood. Back then they were on their own and if mum and dad did not help they really were in trouble. Often these events caused family breakdowns and long term feuds that never healed. Happily, I don’t recall any other such events in Kingsley but the local and national newspapers bore witness to these circumstances in the wider community. I suppose the fact that far more of these type of situations did not occur was quite simply fear. The swinging sixties were to change all that!

Anyway back to the case in point, after some time the young man was brought to account for his indiscretion. He found himself the subject of a court hearing at which it was intended to decide the level of support he would have to provide for the young lady. He denied responsibility and contested the case. I don’t recall exactly how many hearings there were, but at the final one, the young fellow failed to appear. Incredibly, it was reported, that police cars were driving around Alton calling his name over the loud hailer and summoning him to attend the proceedings. The details of what followed I cannot recall but his fatherhood was established and, no doubt, payment obtained. Again the sense of outrage and disgust amongst the community was palpable and the sympathy totally with the young lady. These matters were all a matter of public record and anyone wishing to research village history in greater depth can, I am sure, find full details in the archives of the local newspapers. Suffice to say, "things ain't what they used to be".

In addition to the two single offences outlined above there was also a young man who got into trouble and appeared to embark upon a life of crime. He was several years younger than I but I knew him very well. Sadly, he got into trouble at a young age and continued to offend for as long as I knew him. The last time I encountered him was after I had joined the Prison Service and had been sent to H.M.P. Winchester for my initial training before going to the training school in Wakefield. One day I happened to hear my name being called from above and upon looking there smiling down was the chap in question. We exchanged a few words and that was that. In those days if a member of staff knew a prisoner it had to be reported. Usually this resulted in the individual, prisoner, being moved to another establishment. Since I was about to depart to Wakefield I believe that did not happen in this case. I have not seen him since. However, as far as I am aware, he was the only one of the youngsters that grew up in the village at that time that went on to visit the prison system.

Scams Bulletin June 2014

The purpose of this scams bulletin is to enable Hampshire residents to be aware, and therefore guard against the type of scams currently being reported to the Hampshire Trading Standards Service.

Trading Standards will collate information on scams to provide information and intelligence to the public and other agencies but will normally only intervene when the victim is vulnerable and has been financially abused
.
In appropriate cases Trading Standards will also seek to take enforcement action through the courts.

If you are worried about a potential scam please contact: Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on
03454 04 05 06 or online using the Online consumer complaint form

Bank Account Fraud

Hampshire Trading Standards Service has received recent enquiries about a sophisticated
bank account fraud. The fraud is very convincing, and Hampshire residents are urged to keep alert should they receive a telephone call from someone alleging they work for a fraud or security department connected to their bank. The caller will cause alarm by warning the customer that their
bank account has been compromised in some way and suspicious activity has occurred. They will ask their intended victim to phone their bank’s fraud department without delay.

However, unbeknown to the receiver of this call, the fraudster has kept the telephone line open. Therefore, when the victim phones what they believe to be an official number, they are re connected to the fraudster. The fraudster this time, posing as the bank, will then ask the customer to transfer their funds into a separate holding account. Once this is done, the call is terminated and the money is
lost.

Real life case study

Mr C received a call during the evening from someone who said they worked for
the ‘Visa Verification Department’ at his bank. He asked Mr C to confirm who his bank was. Mr C was told someone had attempted to access his account, and he was asked to phone the fraud department at his bank. Mr C found the telephone number on the internet so had no reason to doubt he was phoning the correct department. He was then asked to transfer his current account funds and savings into a holding account. Mr C transferred approximately £18,000. When the call was terminated, Mr C began to question the authenticity of this matter. He decided to phone the fraud department again. This time, he spoke with the correct office who advised him he had been scammed.

Trading Standards Officers visited Mr C and he agreed to change his telephone number. This is the only way Mr C can stop the fraudster from contacting him again. Mr C is pursuing his complaint through the Financial Ombudsman Service, in the hope he receives his money back.

Should you receive a similar telephone call DO NOT engage in conversation and hang up
as soon as possible. Check the validity of the call with your local bank branch, but DO NOT
make a phone call from your land line as this may reconnect you to the fraudster. Use a
mobile phone if you have one, or ask a neighbour/friend to check for you. Best of all, visit your bank branch in person.

Most banks have security systems in place to deal with fraudulent attempts on an account.
Normal practice is to place a block to prevent money from being taken. They will not ask a
customer to transfer funds over the phone in these circumstances.

If you are worried about scams please contact:
Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 03454 04 05 06 Or online using the Online consumer complaint form

Real life case study 2

Mrs E received a phone call from a male who alleged he worked for ‘Visa Payment Security’. He asked if she had lost her debit card, as £900 had just been taken by a well known shop. Mrs E found her card in her purse, and told the male she had not lost it. He advised her that she may be victim of a fraud, and to phone the number on the back of the card. Mrs E dialled this number
immediately. She was advised to transfer all her money, £25,000 in total, into one account. Mrs E did so using internet banking. She was then advised to transfer this amount into a separate holding account, and he gave her a sort code and account number. Mrs E was not prepared to do this, and said she would drive to her local branch for help. The caller said he suspected the fraud was being committed by someone in the branch, and he advised Mrs E to say she was transferring the money into a relative’s account. During the journey she began to doubt the validity of the call. On arriving at the bank, they advised her this was an attempt at a fraud. Thankfully, no money had been lost.

Copycat ‘Government’ Websites

Hampshire residents are warned to look out for numerous copycat websites that they may find
using a search engine or receive a link to in an email. Copycat websites charge a fee to process or renew documents, such as passports or visas, which can be done for free or much cheaper through the official organisation. Although it is not against the law for a private company to offer a similar  service, their website should carry a clear disclaimer explaining it is not affiliated with the official body in any way.

Current Copycat ‘Government’ Websites to look out for include:

• Passport Renewal or Checking Service
• EHIC Card
• Congestion Tax
• Car Tax
• Driving License Renewal
• Tax Refunds

There are a number of ways to spot a copycat website:

• Read the homepage of the website carefully as it may even state it is not affiliated with the official body.
• Don’t be mislead by a ‘.org’ address. This does not guarantee it is the official site.
• Look out for ‘paid for’ search engine results. These are boxed adverts displayed at the top of search engine results pages. Quite often the official site is not the top result.
• Check to see if the web address begins with ‘https’ as this acts as an encryption to
• protect personal details.

Do not open any links contained in an email if you are not sure of its source.
DO NOT open an email or any attachments if you have any concerns about its source or content.

For further advice or to report a scam please contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 03454 04 05 06 or online using the Online consumer complaint form

Real life case study

Mr B needed to renew his car tax, and carried out an internet search to find out how to do this. Mr B found what he presumed to be the official website and made a payment online. However, three weeks later, he had not received his tax disc. He contacted the DVLA who confirmed this was a scam.

Computer Telephone Scams

Hampshire County Council Trading Standards Service continues to receive enquiries from concerned consumers and businesses who receive a telephone call from someone claiming to be from their computer support service. Once the caller has got the consumers attention they may try to:

• Sell and install software that may damage the computer
• Request payment details to pay for non existent services
• Take control of the computer remotely
• Direct you to fraudulent websites that will ask you for personal and financial
• information

Should you receive a similar unsolicited phone call, remember:

DO NOT purchase any software or services
NEVER give control of your computer to a third party
NEVER Provide your credit card or financial information
HANG UP as soon as possible

If you are worried about scams, please contact; Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline on 03454 04 05 06 Or online using the Online consumer complaint form

Real life case study

Mrs P received a call from a man who alleged to work for her computer software support centre. He said that her computer operating system was out of date and he could install an update. Mrs P was in the process of moving house, so she told the caller her computer was disconnected and had been packed up. The man terminated the call. This made Mrs P suspicious and on checking with Trading
Standards she was advised this was a scam.

Crimestoppers May

Hampshire Crimestoppers is continuing the fight against Rural Crime by targeting would-be thieves across the county. Crimestoppers is fighting back with a campaign to stop theft of farm machinery and equipment. This may include oil, diesel, batteries, metal for its scrap value, tools, quad bikes, agricultural chemicals, tractors, and even livestock.

Rural crime costs the country a great deal - an estimated £50 million to £70 million worth of plant and agricultural machinery is stolen nationally every year, and only 5% of this stolen property is ever recovered. Stealing this valuable equipment – some of which is worth tens of thousands of pounds - may have a lasting effect on its victims who may be unable to carry on their day-to-day business without them. Thieves see it as easy to steal from outbuildings on farms, due to limited surveillance and lack of street lighting away from urban areas.

Rural crime affects us all wherever we might live. We all finish up paying the price with increased insurance premiums and the potential increase in food costs. We would all soon notice if there was no milk because a local farmer could no longer operate his business!

It is very important not to buy anything suspicious ‘out the back of a van’, at a car boot sale or from a website. You may think you’re getting a bargain on that chainsaw, or power tools, but you’re actually contributing to the crime – if people didn’t buy stolen goods, there would be no point the thief stealing them in the first place. You may also find yourself explaining to the Police and a Court why you thought the cheap quad bike with no paperwork that you bought from a bloke down the pub was a genuine purchase.

The recession has increased pressure on rural communities and this makes it more important that people who have vital knowledge have a safe and anonymous way to give information. We understand that rural communities are close-knit and trust is an important part of rural life, so people may be aware of who is committing these crimes but don’t feel comfortable giving this information directly to the police. This is where Crimestoppers can help, by providing contact details for people to pass on information about crimes anonymously.

If you’ve information about ANY crime, please call Crimestoppers on 0800 555111, or log on to www.crimestoppers-uk.org  Your call is free, no one will know you called and you may earn a cash reward. You can also follow me on twitter @HantsCrimestopp

PC Simon Wright

Your photos now belong to US corporations

Unusually, I'm going to refer you straight to another blog without further comment. I'll start you off here:

Have you ever uploaded a photo to Facebook, Instagram or Flickr?

If so, you'll probably want to read this, because the rules on who can exploit your work have now changed radically, overnight.

Amateur and professional illustrators and photographers alike will find themselves ensnared by the changes, the result of lobbying by Silicon Valley and radical bureaucrats and academics. The changes are enacted in the sprawling Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act which received Royal Assent last week, and it marks a huge shift in power away from citizens and towards large US corporations.

How so? Previously, and in most of the world today, ownership of your creation is automatic, and legally considered to be an individual's property. That's enshrined in the Berne Convention and other international treaties, where it's considered to be a basic human right. What this means in practice is that you can go after somebody who exploits it without your permission - even if pursuing them is cumbersome and expensive.

The UK coalition government's new law reverses this human right. When last year Instagram attempted to do something similar, it met a furious backlash. But the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act has sailed through without most amateurs or semi-professionals even realising the consequences.

Please read the full article at The Register. The BBC's article is here.

Stolen trailer

Do you recognize this trailer? Perhaps it's yours or belongs to one of your neighbours.

PC Steve Rogerson from the Country Watch team is trying to trace the owner as he believes it may have been stolen, but so far he has been unsuccessful.

If you know anything about it please contact the Country Watch team using this form or by calling 101.

Stolen statue

Please keep an eye out for this statue that has been stolen from a property near Alton at the end of last week. If you see this anywhere for sale then please report it to Police. It is a large garden statue made of bronze.