Keep warm, safe and free from crime this winter

As the nights draw in, with the official arrival of British Winter time, we at Milton Keynes Council are reminding people to stay safe, and secure at home – and not be caught out by ‘scam artists’ who come knocking at your door.

If someone knocks on your door offering to do something for you or to sell you seomething, follow these simple steps to protect yourself from becoming a victim of doorstep crime.

1, Open your door using a chain

2. Ask for ID

3. Politely say ‘no, thankyou’ to whatever is being offered if you are not entirely comfortable

4. Close the door

5. Call Trading Standards on 08454 040506 and report the caller to us 

It is your home and your doorstep so you are not being rude by turning them away. The council has a stock of window stickers available for residents who wish to say no to cold callers without having to answer the door, so please contact us at consumeradvice@milton-keynes.co.uk or call the number above if you would like to receive one in the post.

At this time of the year the gutter cleaners and roof repairers start to appear offering to dow work there and then. Please take it from me that whatever they are offering you is not a bargain, but a potential opportunity to look through your windows or work out if you keep cash in the house when it comes to paying them.

Do not do business on the doorstep!

Getting rid of those tea-time nuisance calls

Why is it that every night I get a phone call just when I am sitting down to eat my tea, not from my family or my friends but from someone hoping to sell me double glazing, trying to get me to sign up for their broadband service or something else I don’t really want?

Some of these callers are really quite aggressive too and don’t like letting you go, even though you have just explained that your spaghetti is going cold!

I have registered my phone number with the Telephone Preference Service on 0845 070 0707 (or www.tpsonline.org.uk) but what I did not consider was that I need to re-register if the calls are starting to come through again because each time I sign up to get a new catalogue or credit card, my name ends up back on the lists – unless I remember to look for the box to tick saying I do not want these nuisance calls!
I can enjoy my tea in peace again now.

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Introduction

This is my first blog entry for MK Citizen so I better start by introducing myself. I have been in Milton Keynes for nearly two years now and cannot believe that length of time has passed already.

I arrived here from North Yorkshire where I was responsible for fraud and special investigations and before that I was with Wiltshire trading standards, so I have been about a bit!

Since arriving in MK I have been instrumental in a few changes and we still have much work to do before I am completely satisfied with the way we operate.
We are now much more outcome focussed which is a far better use of resources.

Some of you may not know that the scope of MK trading standards also covers animal health and animal control, the latter recently receiving a lot of media attention for dealing with cockroaches.

Anyway that is more than enough of an intro for now. Over the coming weeks and months I will tell you what we are up to in trading standards, some of which is going to be really radical and dynamic so please, watch this space!

Just one of many blogs available at www.miltonkeynes.co.uk