WITH NUMEROUS reports of burglaries and thefts in the Thornbury area, it is good to know that there are people ready to do something about it.

When Sandra Leach approached the men eyeing up cars on her street, it showed something that might not have always been obvious, that people in the town will not take criminal behaviour lying down.

As PC White says, normal residents are not expected to transform into have-a-go heroes, but that doesn’t mean that positive action cannot be taken when the opportunity presents itself.

Neighbourhood watch schemes are useful to a community because they create just that – a “community” atmosphere. It gives a purposeful reason to get to know your neighbours, integrate new people quicker, and generally look out for and get to know each other.

But even if the scheme is in place, it still comes down to an individual’s instinct to act in the face of a problem, and in this case it is remarkable that Sandra Leach did.