Community Speedwatch in Action

A conversation with Nigel Allen, Parish Councillor and Speedwatch Coordinator in Long Crendon

Nigel nearly gave up Speedwatch 18 months ago. There just didn’t seem to be any commitment to it in the village and he started to wonder if it was worth the trouble. Then Long Crendon got their SIDs (Speed Indicator Devices - like we have in Brill) and residents noticed a difference and enthusiasm returned.

NIGEL I extracted the data from the SIDs and, yes, there was a drastic change. The average speed dropped from 39mph to 35mph.

HANNAH So are SIDs alone enough to stop speeding?

No. You need both. 35mph is still speeding*! The SIDs only give times and speeds. Speedwatch gives us more information and an extra edge of deterrent.

And Speedwatch lets you go after individual culprits?

They can’t be prosecuted using Speedwatch evidence - but they do get a stern warning letter from the police. And repeat offenders get a visit. We write down registration numbers. You always have three people at the roadside. One person holds the speed detection device - we call it the hairdrier - and another memorises the first four letters of the number plate and another person notes the last three. Things happen quite fast and you have to get it right. We might get 200 cars passing in an hour along the Bicester Road, sometime 300 around school pick-up. Afterwards we upload the information to the Speedwatch website and the police take it from there.

Nigel told me more about setting up Speedwatch in Long Crendon in late 2023. The Thames Valley Police Community Speedwatch Lead is PC Lee Turnham.

Lee’s really helpful. Volunteers sign up online and we’re vetted. The training is online, only half-an-hour, at your own pace. It’s mostly common sense. Lee doesn’t run roadside sessions but he comes along and teaches the assigned coordinator how to use the speed gun and upload information.

Are you obliged to run a certain number of sessions?

No, it’s up to us. I have a dozen signed-up volunteers but only five or six are really proactive. I suggest dates in our WhatsApp chat and people say what they can do. We have to register our sessions - and we can only do them in certain places which have been pre-approved by Lee for safety.

Daytime only?

Yes and only in reasonable weather. Heavy rain and fog reduce visibility and we didn’t run anything in January or February because it was so cold. We try to vary days and times but most of our active volunteers are working so we usually do weekends.

How do passing motorists respond to you at the roadside in their hi-vis?

We’ve run 50 sessions now and we’ve only had one bad incident. A chap stopped his car and ranted about us having nothing better to do. He was pretty aggressive. We reported him to the police.

Was he speeding?

Yes, he was! A few drivers put their middle fingers up but local people are very appreciative. People do still sometimes ask why we can’t get a police van with a camera but they just don’t have the resources.

Tell me about equipment. Do you have to buy anything?

No. Lee supplies everything, hi-vis and clickers to count the cars and so on. The speed guns are old ones the police no longer use. Some villages share a gun. I think Cuddington shares. There’s no cost to the village except for the yellow Speedwatch signs on the village entrances. We got ours from Sign Wizard in Aylesbury.

So we just need to find some volunteers in Brill now?

You only need three volunteers to kick things off but there has to be one enthusiastic person to take the lead and be the assigned coordinator. I’d be happy to come up to chat to them. The online portal is very straightforward but it helps to have someone with you the first time. Yeah, I’d be happy to help.

Thanks. And, finally, what can I say to encourage people?

Look at the data! Speedwatch really makes a difference. Having the SIDs and the Speedwatch signs on the village entrances and the team there in hi-vis on the roadside. It sends a powerful message to motorists that the community takes dangerous driving seriously.

*The 5mph matters. A pedestrian hit by a car doing 30mph has a 1 in 5 chance of being killed. That risk rises to 1 in 3 if the car is doing 35mph.

Visit the Community Speedwatch UK website to read more about the scheme - and email Brill Parish Council if you’re interested in volunteering.