We all, of course, rely on the police to keep us safe and to bring criminals to justice through investigating crimes.

But that is not to say that we don't have our own part to play in the war on crime.

Neighbourhood Watches have a long tradition of supporting the police by doing what any right-thinking member of society should be happy to do - keeping an eye on their local community.

It's something pays dividends, never more so than in the case of the Neighbourhood Watch member in Bradford who filmed two burglars on his mobile phone.

That evidence helped police secure convictions for the criminals and the police have quite rightly highlighted the importance of such public-spiritedness in helping them do their job.

The public and the police are not two separate entities - our fortunes are inextricably linked and just as we rightly expect the police to do their job, we must also do our bit to fight crime.

The world would be a much better place if we all took more of an interest in our local area, whether that's our street or our block of flats or just the people who live on either side and across the road.

No-one has to devote endless hours to being a Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator - though those that do are highly valuable members of our society - nor do we have to be "curtain twitchers".

We just need to show an interest in our fellow residents and be watchful for anything out of the ordinary or any suspicious behaviour. That way we can tell the crooks that they're just not wanted anywhere.