Security and personal safety

It’s important that you consider home security and personal safety.

Big cities like Leeds, Nottingham and Bradford give criminals greater opportunities, (especially student areas where there are multiple people living in shared houses) so everyone has to be extra vigilant and take extra care in protecting themselves and their property.

What are we doing to keep you safe

• External lighting has been fitted around many of our properties
• Ground floor flats in houses and shared properties have burglar alarms. 
• Good quality internal and external doors, locks and letter box protectors have been provided. 
• Larger sites have door entry systems to enable you to identify callers before you let them in.
• CCTV and door on larger sites
• We provide information through Tenancy support and advice and work with the Universities, Councils and Police to keep up to date with current issues that are important to students

Burglar alarm

Check the burglar alarm instructions before you go in to the house for the first time so you have the number to hand. It is provided in an email generated to your personal email account when you collect your keys.

It is normal to just tap in the code to unset and again to set as you leave the property. Further instructions can be found here.

If you don’t feel confident working your burglar alarm, contact your Housing Management Officer

Walk in burglaries 

Nearly half of burglaries in the traditional student areas are ‘walk in’ crimes where the intruder gets in through a door or window that has been left open. Shut and lock doors and windows even when you are in another room.

99% of burglaries that have occurred in Unipol properties have been through an insecure window or door and Unipol cannot do anything further to prevent this type of crime, apart from reinforcing the message and educating our tenants

Crime 

• Shut easily accessible windows when you are out of the room
• Lock the external door even when you are at home
• Resist having an ‘open house’ where people (even your friends!) can wander in and out freely
• Don’t let anyone follow you in and don’t open doors to people you
• don’t know
• Report any outside lights that aren’t working
• Always lock your car and fit a quality immobiliser and alarm
• Take your keys and valuables upstairs to bed
• Travel with friends wherever possible after dark especially in quiet areas
• Carry laptops and phones out of sight

Burglary

If you are burgled you should take the following action;

Report the matter to the Police. It is vital that you get a crime reference number and pass it to Unipol. Without a crime reference number it will be impossible to get insurance companies to pay out on any damage for which you may be liable.

• Out of office hours, phone Unipol on 0113 244 3799 and report the burglary and tell us if the property needs securing.
• Take some photos to provide some evidence of what has happened and send them in to Unipol is appropriate. 
• Get in touch if you would like some Tenancy Support, as being a victim of crime can be distressing

During office hours you can phone; Leeds 0113 243 0169 / Bradford 01274 235 899/ Nottingham 0115 934 5020

Personal safety 

Street crime often gets a lot of publicity. Muggings and bag snatching are still quite rare. Your chance of being a victim of these sorts of crime is reduced dramatically when you are with other people.

• If you are on your own, stick to busy areas and avoid quiet shortcuts.
• If you need to talk or text, stop with your back to a wall so that no one can sneak up behind you.
• If you need to carry a laptop, put it in an inconspicuous bag.
• Carry your keys on you, not in your bag.
• Jackets and bags are easy to steal when you are out in a pub or club so keep wallets, purses and keys on you at all time.

'Immobilise'; the National Property Register scheme is supported by the Police and Universities. You can register your possessions on this site for free, and if they get stolen and recovered by the Police, it’s easier for them to identify who they belong to and return them. Remember, your possessions are covered by Endsleigh - so check the details to ensure that what you own is covered; we cant do this for you. 

CCTV

Many of Unipol's larger sites have CCTV in the communal areas of the building for the security and safety of the tenants but also for the management of the building. If a serious incident occurs we will work with the Police to provide them with the information requested.

If your property has a CCTV feed on your aerial system (usually only in larger developments) then you can use this to look at the areas covered from home. You should not record this or use it for any other purposes.

Vacations

If all tenants are away from the property for a while;

• Make sure all door and windows are securely shut and all locks are used
• Leave a light on in a room to deter burglars. Lights on timer switches give the impression that the property is occupied.
• Use your burglar alarm if you have one
• Take valuables home with you at least making sure they cannot easily be seen through windows
• Empty the fridge and clean it out (leave the door open if turned off)
• Empty the bin
• If cold weather is expected, leave on the heating but turn the thermostat down to around 10 degrees to prevent frozen pipes

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