![]() ![]() It’s all about the “onion effect” – layers of security. Treat fuel as a very expensive commodity along with your machinery. Fuel and heating oil theftįuel and heating oil has to be placed in a restricted area, protected by CCTV and/or lighting.īarriers and cages around fuel tanks are a good idea, but are only as good as the locks placed on them.įarmers can also consider disguising fuel tanks to make them less obvious. The main entrance should be a double gate or gate mechanism, so imposters cannot drive into the main compound.Ī coded entrance on the gate is ideal, if you can afford it. Some farmers spend a fortune on fancy gates, but will put a £10 lock on them, which is nonsensical. ![]() That’s one of the biggest pitfalls of farm gates. Many gates can be easily lifted or off their hinges. Make sure gates are operative and difficult to open, especially at night. You can put an electronic barrier around a door and as soon as someone breaks the barrier, it will trigger an alarm.Ĭovertly, it can send a signal to a security company or police station, or start CCTV recording. Put up signs in places where you keep machinery, too. Having guard dogs loose in a farmyard at night is a big deterrent for criminals. Good signs include: “CCTV in operation 24/7”, “Caution guard dogs on control”, “Dogs loose, do not enter”. The downside is that beams can also be triggered by animals, which puts off some people from deploying them. Movement sensorsĪnother useful security aid, movement sensors trigger an alarm or CCTV directly to your phone, so you know someone has crossed that beam who should not be there. You are trying to catch criminals before they put their hoods or balaclavas on. ![]() Hidden cameras in a rock or in hedges can be very effective as people don’t know they are there. There are two types of CCTV: overt and covert. CCTV and lightingĪ plan should be put in place first. Mick Hawkes’ 11 farm security solutions to thwart rural thieves 1. The rise in animal rights extremists breaking into farms is an increasing threat, but the situational awareness training offered by Hawkes & Co can help farmers to tackle this. Her expertise is in “breakaway”, which is how to escape the clutches of a criminal and out of harm’s way. Keely trains young people and adults in security and situational awareness, and rape prevention. She has also received training in self-defence. Keely is being trained by two former SAS veterans – security consultant Richard “Ginge” Johnson in BTEC Level 2 Conflict Management, and Lofty Wiseman, the renowned survival instructor – in situational awareness. Mick and Keely also offer personal safety training for farmers, their workers and families. ![]() “The emphasis for us really is understanding that everybody is on a budget these days.” “We are not there to make money off the back of farmers by recommending ridiculous security upgrades,” he adds. Thereafter, any recommendations will be cost-effective, and bigger expenditure on crime prevention measures – such as CCTV or lighting – will only be recommended as a last resort on farms that face specific crime problems. All that costs is the time we do the training and then a security assessment,” he explains. “If we can get the mindset of farmers and their workers right initially to think about security, that is a major bridge. Mick says his company’s ethos is to help farm businesses improve their security by focusing on cost-effective solutions, rather than selling expensive security systems. “If we can stop kids getting stabbed and farmers getting ripped off then for me, that’s job done.” We are not money- driven, we are driven to help people,” he says. “I want to keep Hawkes & Co as a small entity. The father-of-four spent 22 years working in corporate security following 24 years of military service.Īfter returning to rural Herefordshire in May 2022, Mick soon realised rural crime had become a significant problem and there was an opening for him and his daughter, Keely, to set up Hawkes & Co – a new company specialising in farm security and situational awareness among young people in schools and colleges. Now, Mick is seeking to put his experiences to good use, albeit in a different way, by helping farmers to change their mindsets towards rural crime, understand how criminals operate and correct any security weaknesses on their farms. ![]()
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