Someone’s at the door!
1) Don’t just open the door!
2) If it is a friend who is visiting, remember to maintain Social Distancing of 2 metres throughout your chat!
3) If doorbell rings and you are not expecting someone, always check from an upstairs window, a spy hole, or via an intercom to double check, before you open the door. If you have a chain on the door, make sure it is on
4) If it is somebody you don’t know and they are asking for an adult – but your parents are not at home or not available - never say you are in the house alone, say that your parents are busy (on another call, in the bath, changing the baby) and cannot come to the door.
Delivery!
1) If you receive a delivery – make sure the postman leaves it on the doorstep – remember Social Distancing rules – when the postman has stepped away, check the package
2) If someone tries to deliver a parcel you have not ordered, refuse to accept it so that it goes back to the depot or the sender
3) It has been reported by the Police that residents have received packages addressed to them but when they opened them up they found they contained valuable items (such as new mobile phones or laptops) that they hadn't ordered
A short while after the packages were delivered a woman wearing a DPD courier uniform is reported to have arrived to recollect the packages, claiming they had been delivered to the wrong address.
Police advice is: if goods are delivered that you have not ordered and are marked with your address you should inform the company that sent it and wait for them to send a courier.
Always check with them which courier company is making the collection and when they will arrive. If someone is at your door claiming to have come to pick up a parcel you never ordered, ring 999.
Answering the phone
If you receive a call on your home phone OR mobile from a number you do not recognise:
1) If you are a child, pass it onto a parent or guardian. If you are at home alone, just hang up or don’t answer altogether!
2) Don't reveal personal details. Never give out personal or financial information (such as your bank account details or your PIN) over the phone, even if the caller claims to be from your bank.
3) Hang up. If you feel harassed or intimidated, or if the caller talks over you without giving you a chance to speak, end the call. It may feel rude to hang up on someone, but you have the right not to be pressurised into anything.
4) Ring the organisation. If you're unsure whether the caller is genuine, you can always ring the company or bank they claim to be from. Make sure you find the number yourself and don’t use the one provided by the caller.
5) Don't be rushed. Scammers will try to rush you into providing your personal details. They may say they have time-limited offer or claim your bank account is at risk if you don't give them the information they need right away.
Out and About
If you are out on your daily walk with your children (or by yourself!)
1) Remember to keep Social Distancing rules (2 metres apart) during your walk but make sure you have full awareness of your surrounding in order not to put yourself in a dangerous situation, such as stepping into the road to let someone else through
2) Make sure you are aware of traffic when crossing the road
3) Do not use headphones or look at your mobile phone where this is unsafe (i.e. whilst jogging on the street)
4) Get young children into the habit of holding your hand
5) You can start teaching the Green Cross Code from age five, encouraging children to stop, look, listen and think
6) But children won’t always remember safety rules, especially if they’re excited or spot a friend across the road
7) Children will copy what you do, so try to avoid stepping into the road without checking for traffic first. If you can do the right thing, it will help them get into good habits.
IN AN EMERGENCY ALWAYS DIAL 999
