This year's summer barbecue takes place on Saturday 14th July from 2pm in the Bede Anandappa Centre in Binyon Crescent and on the lawn outside.

As always there will be a selection of barbecue food and a buffet of Asian delights. Entertainments for the afternoon will include Karaoke, live music, inflatables and a raffle with great prizes.

Barbecue and buffet price is £2 for adults; £1 for children.

Anyone wishing to help out on the day is more than welcome to come up to the hall at about midday.

The Woodlands Community Association met for its Annual General Meeting on 17th May. The following is a summary of what happened at the meeting.(you can see the full minutes and details fo the committee for 2006-2007 here):

Dog Fouling - it was noted that a new bin for dogs' waste had been installed near the entrance to Bentley Priory in Masefield Avenue.

Council Responsiveness - Joy reported that the Council is starting to be more responsive to our requests. For example, vandalised manhole covers have recently been repaired.

Woodlands Drive Windows - Joy was also pleased to report that some of the Woodlands Drive windows were finally getting repaired, which was welcome news given the ongoing problems. The remaining repairs are due for completion in 2007- 2008, along with full bathroom refits for all council properties.

Brockhurst Corner traffic - we are stilling waiting to hear about the proposed pedestrian crossing at Brockhurst Corner, after the submission of the petition reported in the last newsletter.

Arnold Terrace signage - residents of Arnold Terrace are still suffering from poor signage leading to confusion between addresses in the Terrace and Bridges Road. Jill and her daughter have tried to remedy the confusion, but the council still appear to misunderstand the problem. We are making further enquiries.

Kipling Place Parking - the Residents' Parking Scheme in Kipling Place was about to come into effect (and is in effect at the time of going to press). Residents report that they are able to park much more easily now that those not living in the street are not permitted to park there.

Youth Club - There is no longer an official Youth Club Co-ordinator; the committee intends to find out what are the future plans for the club.

Proposed Neighbourhood Centre - there has been no progress on the proposed centre on Sinclair Field reported in the last newsletter. It was noted that there seems to be some opposition to the plans, even at this early stage, but it was made clear that a full consultation would take place.

Footpaths - There was some praise noted for the Council's recent tidying up of public footpaths, such as the one through to Brockhurst Comer from Binyon Crescent.

The recent killings of Special Constable Nisha Patel-Nasri and Kiyan Prince have further raised the profile of knife crime locally and Harrow Police are taking part in and supporting this campaign.

Posters publicising the knife amnesty are to be circulated to all High Schools on the Borough through our Safer Schools Officers, these posters will also be displayed at a number of Harrow Council Poster Sites.

A good turnout gathered in the Bede Anandappa Community Centre on 22nd March for the WCA General Meeting. The full minutes may be viewed here, but the following is a brief summary of the topics discussed.

WCA Chair Joy Anandappa was unwell and the meeting was chaired by the Vice Chair.

On the Brockhurst corner traffic issues, it was reported that Cllr. Marilyn Ashton had presented the petition to the Council's Traffic Panel on behalf of the association. The Council will now undertake a review of safety at the roundabout.

Residents in Kipling Place have received notification that a residents' parking permit scheme is to be introduced (this is due to commence in May).

There has been renewed interest in the proposed new Neighbourhood Centre which has been on the council’s back burner since Bede’s passing. The Association assumes that the project, which is likely to be built on Sinclair Field and the are of the adjacent garages will not go ahead without wide-ranging consultation.

Present at the meeting was David Byrne, Programme and Project Manager from Harrow Housing, who had been invited to address the ongoing issue of Woodlands Drive residents' windows. David explained the 'enveloping' process which was intended to achieve the Decent Homes Standard. The process includes wiring, heating, kitchens, bathrooms, windows and exterior doors. All these were due on the Woodlands Estate during the 2007/8 financial year. The work was prioritised by undertaking a conditional survey. For full details of what Mr Byrne said, see the full minutes.

• Joy reported that the appeal in the newsletter had revealed six households that were still waiting for replacement windows. The council had now told Joy that there would be no funds to tackle this unfairness until 2008 at the earliest. Some had said their old windows made their homes uninhabitable and their children sick. Linda pointed out that all council homes must meet the Government’s Decent Homes Standard by 2010. Marilyn Ashton promised to take this issue up.
  
• On the issue of refuse collection, it was confirmed that all houses on the estate now had brown bins. Regarding biodegradable bin liners, although it was pointed out that they were available to buy, Linda had heard that the council would not allow them to be used in the brown bins yet. This situation may change.
  
• Joy reported some changes that had taken place at the HFTRA. A new Committee, chaired by Ann Evans of Miscellaneous Properties with Norman Campbell as Vice-Chair, had ideas different to those of past Committees. Joy herself had been persuaded to rejoin temporarily as Secretary, with Woodlands’ own Ann Archer newly elected as Treasurer. Joy said that the council was losing many of its senior officers. Gwyneth Allen was now Acting Chief Housing Officer, and meetings for various “strategy groups” involving residents had yet to be organised.
  
• At a recent Resident Involvement Planning Day, Estate Liaison Officer Paul Horsley had given figures showing that very little had been spent on minor improvements on Woodlands, and nothing was planned, while other estates were set to receive thousands of pounds. The budget for the forthcoming year was not fully allocated, and residents had been asked for their suggestions. Linda remembered that Max had previously requested extended parking in Kipling Place, and wondered whether there were any other ideas. Some called for crossings over grass verges in Masefield Avenue to be restored. Linda promised to email Paul Horsley with these proposals. There was praise from the floor for recent landscaping improvements at Brockhurst Corner, but these had not used Minor Estates Improvement monies.
  
• Brockhurst Corner Crossings – Joy explained that a petition, which Jill had drafted and distributed in shops on the roundabout, had followed a plea from a “care in the community” home in Woodlands Drive. Others had joined the call for additional pedestrian crossings at the roundabout, especially across Kenton Lane and Clamp Hill, as people were finding it dangerous to cross. Some agreed with Russell that, from the motorist’s point of view, extra crossings would be a disaster. Cllr. Ashton advised that the petition should be presented to the Cabinet’s Traffic Panel, chaired by Cllr. Miles, when the press would be there. She said she would let Joy know where and when to take it.
  
• Ann had not brought the figures with her, but reported that the current bank balance was in excess of £1000, with some membership donations still to be banked, and more collections planned.
  
• Linda regretted that the membership cards had not been delivered with the newsletter as planned, and gave them to Joy, to ensure that they would be distributed with the next one.
  
• Local Development Framework (LDF) – Linda had received a letter from the council’s Principal Planner Dr. Charles Alonge, seeking the Association’s views on the main social, economic and environmental issues affecting Harrow, to help prepare the LDF’s Core Strategy. Cllr. Ashton clarified that the LDF is yet another document, which would replace the Local Development Plan regarding planning applications. It would not be just about writing policies and making decisions, but consulting with the community. Linda encouraged members with views to contact her.
  
• Community Involvement Officer Dave Prowse began by explaining that his role as a civilian officer was four fifths funded by the Metropolitan Police, and one fifth by Harrow Council. He was responsible for the roll out of the Safer Neighbourhood Teams across the borough, and for the RingMaster messaging system for Neighbourhood Watch (NHW). He pointed out that Sitwell Grove was currently the only Neighbourhood Watch on the Woodlands Estate, co-ordinated by Linda.
  
  Dave promised a Safer Neighbourhood Team for Stanmore Park by March 2007, comprising a Sergeant, two police constables and three police community support officers, who would patrol on foot and could not be extracted for duties outside Stanmore Park, except in an emergency. It was not yet clear where the team would be based. Harrow Police Commander Bob Carr and Harrow Council Chief Executive Joyce Markham were making decisions about the roll out timetable.
  
  Meanwhile, Dave emphasised the importance of reporting crime in the community to him, as he was able to feed information into the police computer system, which was analysed and discussed at “tasking meetings”. Any crime trends spotted were then disseminated via the Ringmaster system, by telephone or email. The significance of intelligence received was graded according to its source, he said, with information from NHW members being graded 1 or 2, whereas from non-NHW, it would be downgraded to 4 or 5.
  Although Linda had been forwarding Ringmaster emails to non-NHW members of Woodlands, and she and Ron had publicised NHW information in the newsletter, Dave stressed that people should really be in a registered NHW to receive it. He urged members to form Watches in their own streets with a minimum of ten immediate neighbours, and pointed out that home insurance discounts often apply to Watch members. New street signs and window stickers would soon be available to replace the out-of-date ones that are still being displayed on the estate.
  
  Dave said that Woodlands members could call him at any time on 020 8733 3416 and leave a message or email partnershipunitQA@met.police.uk. They should not email the Ringmaster address, as this was not monitored. There was acknowledgement that ringing the general police number for Harrow, 020 8423 1212, would usually entail a very long wait, as some members had experienced. Dave spoke of plans for a national non-emergency number.
  
  Nobu raised the issue of the antisocial behaviour incidents that resulted in broken windows in Masefield Avenue. He had given a written report to Dave. Despite video evidence being supplied to the police, there had been no news about whether the identified perpetrators had been brought to justice over one year after the event. Linda insisted that witnesses need feedback if people are to be persuaded to continue to provide evidence. Although this matter did not fall directly within Dave’s remit, he knew that police often have no time to report back on outcomes, and promised to pass on the message and try to find out what had happened. He referred to the Council’s Antisocial Behaviour Co-ordinator, Jackie McCormack, but all who had reported incidents to her, including Nobu and Joy, maintained that no positive outcome or feedback had ever been received from her department. Dave reiterated that these matters fell outside of his area of control, but that he did undertake a lot of advisory work outside of his duties and in his own time. Linda and Ron corroborated this, having seen him at many community meetings.
  
  Linda had been approached by a member who wanted to know what recourse they had when neighbours inconsiderately let off fireworks at prohibited hours night after night, keeping young children awake. Given the said delays in answering calls, Linda wondered at the effectiveness of the advice in the Harrow People to contact the police on 020 8423 1212, and asked Dave how he would expect the police to respond, and whether or not it would be correct to call 999, because an offence was being committed. Dave did not know the answer, as again this was not his area of responsibility. Cllr. Ashton bore out the distress stories, recounting the experiences of distraught constituents who had called her in the middle of the night with terrified pets and screaming babies. She discouraged their timing, but said that she had been able to achieve some favourable results in particular cases. She advised that appealing directly to Commander Carr was often the only way to get the police to act, and Linda said that this was her experience also. Max felt that more advance planning, warning and actual police patrols would alleviate the firework nuisance problem.
  
  Cllr. Ashton lamented that the Harrow Crime Prevention Panel, along with many other community groups, had been denied their council grant this year, due to mix-ups over the application deadline. She feared that justice was not being best served in the borough, especially with the threat of closure still hanging over Harrow Magistrates Court.

Police and local authorities have been alerting parents to the potential problems of mini-motos in a series of targeted campaigns across the country.

One local authority, Coventry, reported that 10 per cent of calls to the "It's Your Call" anti-social behaviour hotline related to misuse of mini-motos.

Hazel Blears said:

"Vehicles like mini-motos are not toys, but all too often they are regarded as such. Owning one of these vehicles carries with it certain responsibilities, including using them sensibly and only on private land. It is not acceptable to ride these vehicles in parks or on pavements and other public highways.

"More retailers are stocking these items, retail prices have fallen and the second hand market has expanded. All of these factors have contributed to the increase in nuisance use of these vehicles. We would also urge retailers to make customers aware of the problems associated with misuse of mini-motos at the point of sale, and for people to think twice before they buy.

"Mini-motos can be dangerous, cause noise nuisance for many people, and, if misused, could be seized by the police and destroyed. A mini-moto for Christmas should not cause needless misery if it is used responsibly and with respect for others".

Inappropriate use of mini-motos is a growing problem across the UK. Although marketed as "toys", these vehicles can reach speeds of up to 60mph and there have already been fatalities and serious injuries from accidents.

Stephen Ladyman said:

"Mini powered vehicles may be fun, but they don't belong on the road or pavement. They can be dangerous and can cause a nuisance in residential areas. The Government wants safe roads and pavements for everyone. This is why we are making efforts to remind people of the need to use these machines safely and sensibly."

Current legislation to tackle the problem of nuisance caused by mini-moto misuse includes:

1. Section 59. Police Reform Act to seize vehicles following further nuisance after an initial warning;

2. Environmental Protection Act 1990 using Section 79, statutory nuisance

3. Noise Act 1996 - removal of noise making equipment;

4. Anti Social Behaviour Orders for those causing by their use alarm, distress and harassment;

5.Arrest for causing public disturbance

Attendance at September's General Meeting was poor but a number of important issues were up for discussion.

Joy (Chair) reported no success in pushing Housing to redress the unfairness of the unfinished work, having been told that no funds could be made available until the 2006-7 financial year at the earliest.

Details of proposed rent increase alternatives did not go in the newsletter, due to a delayed decision to freeze rents until the end of the 2006-7 financial year. This will be made clear in the next newsletter, although tenants should already be aware of this.

Joy reported that the Summer Barbecue and Garden Competition had been a great success with a larger attendance even than last year. Linda read a letter of thanks received from the Mayor. The high expense of the event, however, meant an overall loss. It was agreed that that ticket prices should be increased next year, to help cover costs.

Joy has investigated complaints against Raytel (the council's contractors) concerning the rewiring of some properties on the estate. The Head of Housing has become involved, and found Raytel's work unacceptable. Problems have been resolved to tenants’ satisfaction, and the team concerned have been removed from the contract.

Ann advised that the Association's current bank balance was £920.15, after a loss of £352.92 on the barbecue and related expenses, including the capital investment for the gazebos. The raffle made £138. Other monies paid out included the cost of new padlocks for the storage cupboards in the hall, and the affiliation fee to the Harrow Association of Voluntary Service.

No report on the youth club was received from Tina, but Jill advised that the Youth Workers were proving successful with the youngsters, who have resumed on Mondays and have some popular events planned, such as a Fire Brigade visit, Pizza night, and First Aid.

Sheila reported Brown Bins – Sheila reported that the Woodlands Drive side of the estate is now the only part without the new brown compost bins. Joy will investigate when they will arrive and whether liners for the bins can be provided by the council.

A full copy of the minutes may be found on the committee page.

The Woodlands Community Association Annual General Meeting was held in the Bede Anandappa Community Centre on the evening of 24th May. Enough residents attended for the meeting to go ahead and a range of topics were discussed.

Firstly, Joy welcomed Ruth Angel from First Call. First Call have been appointed by Harrow Council as Independent Tenant Advisor, in order to implement the Housing Options Appraisal. Ruth stressed the independence of First Call, and explained the government’s Decent Homes Standard for Social Housing. Harrow has now chosen the Prudential Borrowing housing finance option – to be repaid from rents through the Housing Revenue Account, and definitely not via Council Tax. The scheme means that Woodlands council tenants will get new kitchens and bathrooms. Those affected will receive further details by post.

‘Phishing’ is the act of sending an e-mail to a user, falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise, in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft.

The e-mail directs the user to visit a website where they are asked to update personal information such as their password, national insurance number and bank accounting details. The e-mail may further suggest that the information is necessary to prevent the account from being suspended.

With this information the fraudster can do a number of things that include stealing the identity of the person who provided the information in the first place to undertaking attacks on that persons bank account. The e-mail is sent to a large group of people, seeking out account users. The scam relies on the contents of the e-mail request being adhered to by the account users and the details provided.
A recent survey revealed that between January 2004 and June 2004, 1.5 million ‘phishing’ e-mails were sent out. More than a quarter of a million were sent in the month of June alone.

The number of active ‘phishing’ sites reported in November 2004 was 1518. The average monthly growth in ‘phishing’ sites from July 2004 to November 2004 is 28%.
It is worthy of note that 5% of recipients respond to spam e-mails. As a result of a response, a new identity is created using the details provided and fraud is committed on the new identity.

The use of the ‘phishing’ medium as a money laundering tool appears to be emerging, where volumes of compromised user data is sold to crime groups, who aggregate the stolen funds into centralised false accounts by a principal organiser or “dump leader”. The use of false employment websites, encouraging users to sign up and provide their banking facilities to forward money to other accounts for a 20% administration fee has also been revealed.

How the crime is committed

E-mails purporting to come from bank security departments are being circulated asking for username and password details in connection with Internet banking. The e-mail invites account holders to click on a URL (Uniform Resource Locator), which generates a web page. Unsuspecting account holders complete their username and password on the web page. Unknowingly the account holder has linked into a web server run by a criminal enterprise.

Once the username and password have been obtained, criminals log into the online banking system of that account and transfer money from that account into another account, from which they are able to obtain the funds.

In order to facilitate the transfers, a number of people are recruited who have accounts at the same bank as the target account. The recruitment involves advertisements on Internet forums and unsolicited e-mails offering jobs as ‘money processors'. Respondents to the advertisements are in receipt of 7% commission of the monies that they handle.

Once the stolen funds are received into the money processors bank account, they are given instructions to withdraw the money in cash and then to use money transfer agents to send the money to the criminal organisers.

Where is the crime committed and by whom?

The crime, like the suspects and the victims can be perpetrated from anywhere in the world. Recent intelligence suggests that organised crime in the former Eastern Block is taking the lead on this type of activity.

Who are the victims?

The victims of ‘phishing’ at present are the banks and financial institutions that are having their customer accounts compromised. It also includes members of Internet auction sites. It is not an unrealistic assumption to consider that members of the public may be liable, if they have not conducted sufficient safeguards before entering the ‘phishing’ website.

Statistics show that the target institutions are English speaking with the USA, United Kingdom and Australia being the primary victims.

What do you do if you receive and e-mail from what you think is your bank?

A bank or other financial institution will not send e-mails to you asking you for details such as PIN numbers, passwords or other personal data, no matter how genuine the e-mail appears.

Do not be tempted to respond and fill out any pages. If you think the e-mail is not genuine, forward it on to the bank it purports to come from.

The Woodlands Community Association is mourning the passing of John Morgan. John was the prime mover in mustering support to restart the Association back in the mid-nineties, sitting as Chair for a few years.

Sadly he had been unwell for some time, but John did a lot for the community and will be sadly missed and fondly remembered by many. The funeral has been arranged for 10am on Wednesday 27 April at the Hendon Crematorium (Tel. (020) 8346 0657), Holders Hill Road, London NW7 1NB. The undertaker is Warwick & Peters (Tel. 01707 391 210). The nearest florist to Hendon Crematorium is Daidrys (Tel 0208 346 5680).

Neighbourhood Watch has had reports of suspects purporting to be builders and offering to tarmac driveways, then demanding extortionate sums of money for their trouble, allegedly using intimidation tactics and threats.

There has been an incident in Harrow, where one householder, who parted with £2,000, has now left the area for fear of further intimidation.

Please be on your guard for anyone knocking on your door offering to do work to your driveway etc. Make sure that they are bona fide tradesmen, and get a quotation in writing before entering into any agreement.

Please disseminate this information to your watch. These people are known to target the elderly and infirm. Please keep an eye out for your vulnerable neighbours.

Remember that any intelligence that you think may help Police in preventing crime can be passed to David Prowse, Community Involvement Officer at Wealdstone Police Station on: 020 8733 3416. David is a civillian employee, who can input information on to the computer systems for us.

On 19th November, the Woodlands Community Association marked the anniversary of the passing of its much-lamented former Chairman Bede Anandappa with two ceremonies on the Woodlands Estate.

At around midday, Woodlands residents and various Harrow luminaries including Bede's wife, Joy (now Chair of the WCA Committee), Harrow MP Tony McNulty, Harrow Mayor Cllr. Lurline Champagnie and Councillors Marilyn and David Ashton and Camilla Bath gathered on the green outside the Community Hall to plant a tree in memory of Bede and his contribution to the Estate and those that live there.

Gill West, lay reader from All Saints Church reflected on Bede's life as the crowd stood in silence in the Autumn sunshine. Tony McNulty also offered his memories of Bede and voiced a message of hope for the future (left). Then the tree was planted and Joy and others present were asked to lay a shovelful of earth on the roots of the young tree which we all hope will grow and prosper for years to come, providing a lasting tribute to Bede's memory.

The tree is marked by a plaque (right) paid for by generous donations from Association members after Bede's death. They wanted to see a permanent tribute to Bede, and the Committee considered a memorial bench and other options before deciding upon a plaque beside the tree. The words of the inscription were chosen by Joy.

Once the tree-planting ceremony was over, the group of about thirty people walked across the slightly sodden grass to witness the renaming of the Woodlands Community Hall as the The Bede Anandappa Centre. The velvet curtain was pulled back by the Mayor and MP to reveal the building's new sign (left). After a few photgraphs, the group went inside the centre for a specially-prepared buffet and drinks. All agreed that the event had been a suitable tribute to Bede and many reflected that perhaps the good weather (which had been preceded by appalling autumn storms) was more than just good fortune; in some sense it was felt that Bede is still watching over us as we continue to try to do justice to his memory.

See the Harrow Observer's report on the event here.

Shortly before the council's Tenant and Leaseholder Open Day in July, we learned that the Housing Department had purchased a free-standing rock crystal plaque, to be presented annually, in memory of Bede (right), for outstanding achievements by individuals or community groups.

We think this is a fitting tribute to Bede; this year, the winners were our neighbours on Cottesmore Estate. Well done to Sylvia Robinson, their new Chair. We hope she will bring the award along to one of our events for us all to see.

To commemorate the anniversary of Bede's death, we are planning a service on Friday 19th November on the green in Binyon crescent. A red plum tree will be planted. The £80 kindly donated by members to the memorial fund will be used to buy a plaque with a suitable inscription. Please join us on the day; all are welcome. Full details will be published nearer the time.

It seems that there are plans to close our Post Office at Brockhurt Corner. If the closure goes ahead in December, many people will find it difficult to travel further afield to collect their pensions and benefits, pay their bills or post their parcels.

We understand that a campaign is underway to try to save this facility (and 9 other local Post Offices scheduled for closure) for the community. There are fears among other businesses on the roundabout that, if the Post Office goes, their trade will drop and they will forced to close as well.

Further details are available from the Post Office itself. To register your views, before the consultation deadline of 13 October, write to

Heather Smith
Scrutiny Team
Harrow Council
P.O. Box 57
Civic Centre
Station Road
Harrow
HA1 2XF

or email heather.smith@harrow.gov.uk

Are you interested in Youth Work experience? Perhaps you are a would-be community worker or teacher. In fact, we want to hear from anyone with a skill to share - sport, cookery, art.... you name it!

Helpers are needed for our Teenage Drop-in for 13-19 year olds on Monday evenings 6.30 to 9.30, and the Youth Club for 8 - 12 year olds on Thursday evenings 6.30 to 8.30.

Both evenings take place at the Woodlands Community Centre during term time only.

If you are interested, contact Tina on 020 8954 1054.

We were praying on a knife edge that the weather would be dry and sunny for our party. And it was! Phew!

The raffle made a good return, with the top three prizes going to members in Masefield Avenue, Kipling Place and Sinclair House.

Thanks go to everyone for their generous donations of extra food, and a very, very big "thanks, guys" to Max and Marion for their hard work and expertise at the barbecue.

Sweet Sensations provided the entertainment. Well done! Everyone enjoyed themselves.

Photos of the day are here.

An inspiring 13 gardens came under the scrutiny of Wyevale Nurseries. They were all so pretty, each one with it's own "wow" factor.

Hard decisions had to be made but the end results were:

1st Prize: Janet O'Moore, Woodlands Drive
2nd Prize: Mr. & Mrs. Grey, Flecker Close
3rd Prize: Joy, Steve and Allan, Communal Gardens Binyon Crescent

Tony McNulty presented the Rose Bowl and winners' certificates. Thanks to Wyevale for the prize vouchers and congratulations to the winners!

See this cutting to see how the press reported the occasion.

The Woodlands Annual General Meeting was held on 18th May. Attendance was not as good as hoped but the meeting went ahead as planned. The full minutes can be downloaded here.

Special tribute was paid by Russell Shaw to Bede's hard work for the Association and everyone acknowledged that his absence has left a huge gap. This made it difficult to give an Annual Report and to follow through on certain projects Bede had started.

The new Officers and Committee for 2004-2005 were elected and can be seen here.

The Woodlands Christmas Social went ahead in December as planned despite the death of Bede in November.

Joy and the Committee felt strongly that the late Chairman would have wanted us to continue with our celebrations and tenants and residents accordingly gathered in the Woodlands Hall on 16th December for some festive merrymaking.

Those attending enjoyed a range of dishes brought by the guest, drank wine and listened to seasonal music. The raffle draw was the high point of the evening with many going home carrying an unexpected Christmas present.

Thanks to all those that helped to prepare on the evening and to those that sold raffle tickets.

In the second incident in a few weeks (see below), a 24-year old woman was sexually assaulted at a bus stop on the Uxrbridge Road

A man, described as black, 25 years old and wearing a black jacket, blue jumper, black jeans and with a scar on the centre of his face, grabbed the woman and indecently assaulted her. He was joined by another man and the two made off on an H12 bus.

Any witnesses are asked to call DC Hawkins on 020 8733 3441.

Another case of a bogus caller has been reported, this time in Bridges Road. The incident concerns an elderly gentleman who lives alone and it sadly ended in robbery.

We all have a duty to help the elderly and infirm by keeping an eye open for them, and reminding them to keep their doors locked, opening them only to people
they know or are expecting.

This message needs to be reinforced on a regular basis. The only choice open to us all is either to leave our doors open to let "visitors" in, or close them to keep them out. If you have trouble opening or closing doors, due to the weather or for any other reason, help is available from the Police Crime Reduction Unit on 020 8733 3465. If no one is available, leave a message on the answer machine and someone will get back to you.

Your Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator is Ron Walsh (see committee page for contact details).

The funeral of Bede Anandappa (see article below) was held on Monday 1st December at 2.45pm at the Breakspear Crematorium in Ruislip.

Dozens of mourners attended the simple and moving ceremony and a floral tribute was presented by the Community Association.

Jo Price, Secretary of the Harrow Federation of Tenants' and Residents' Assocations, read a touching eulogy that reminded those present of the dedication and selflessness of Bede. You can read a full transcript of Jo's speech and some other tributes to the former Chairman here. If you would like to contribute your own memories of Bede, please e-mail them to the webmaster.

It is anticipated that a more enduring tribute to Bede will be agreed by the Association with the full approval of Joy, Bede's wife. More news on these plans in due course.

The Woodlands Community Association is reeling at the news that its much-loved Chairman, Bede Anandappa, has died suddenly at home at the age of 76.

An emergency meeting of the Committee was held on the morning of 23rd November to discuss immediate plans. Details of funeral arrangements and plans for a fitting tribute will be published here in due course. For now, the thoughts of all of us are with Bede's wife, Joy, herself an active member of the Community Association. We hope that in time she will find some solace in the knowledge that her late husband will be so fondly remembered and so sorely missed by all that knew him. No resident of the Woodlands Estate has done more to keep the Community Association alive and active and looking to the future; he will be simply irreplacable.

Bede was a voice and an inspiration for the local area and also gained enormous respect in the wider community. If you would like to post a personal tribute to Bede (pictured right with MP Tony McNulty), please send your contributions to the webmaster.

The Woodlands website has had a facelift courtesy of Woodlands resident and commitee member Max Wurr.

Looking to build on the success of the original site, Max has redesigned and restructured the pages to offer more accessible information and to encourage residents to contribute. The hope is to maintain a site that is more regular updated and more widely used by tenants and residents.

If you would like to contribute to this site, please get in touch with the webmaster and share your ideas.

Now there's a place to discuss local topics and events. Sign up to the WCA Yahoo Group now and make sure that your voice is heard!

A discussion forum has been set up to allow tenants and residents to air their views and to share opinion and debate with other local people. Messages are monitored and vetted to ensure that debate is constructive and does not offend and to protect contributors, some of whom we hope will be younger people, from inappropriate messages and material.

It remains to be seen how well the forum will be used, but for now, we urge you to register and to keep an eye on the group for fun and topical debate.

You can sign up to the group here.