Our service

Operators carry out around 1,500 tasks each year and deal with a diverse range of situations, including: comforting victims of distraction theft and burglary, assisting those subjected to domestic violence by partners or family, fitting key safes to give carers access to homes of the disabled, and installing door chains and viewers, where possible, to empower the elderly against unwelcome callers.

Burglaries (break-ins or distractions) in Wiltshire and Swindon, particularly those involving people over the age of 60, are mandatorily referred to the Trust by Wiltshire Police, whose officers are trained to recognise situations in which the Trust could help.

There is no charge for the service or equipment provided by the Trust, although the necessity of using a high quality key safe means these are expensive items and we do hope clients are able to consider making a donation to cover this cost.

Fire prevention - The Trust has joined with Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service in a project to improve fire safety awareness in the elderly. When a Bobby operator visits a property to secure it, he will now, in addition, make a fire risk assessment and discuss fire safety with the occupants.

Smoke detectors will be fitted and, when considered appropriate, fire safety officers from the brigade will be asked to conduct a more sophisticated level of assessment. This project combines the work of securing homes against crime, whilst ensuring that the threat of fire is minimised and a safe escape route is available and planned.

Domestic abuse - This now accounts for around a quarter of our work and in most cases we are able to upgrade security of a property to prevent access by sometimes violent and aggressive ex-partners. In extreme cases, with the co-operation and funding of local authorities operating the Sanctuary Project, we are able to install a 'safe room' where, during an incident, a family can run to and hide safely until the police arrive.