Bogus callers on rise in Monkhams ward of Woodford Green according to Neighbourhood Watch group

BOGUS callers have moved back into the area, residents claim, because a scheme to deter them has been allowed to fall apart.

A 'no cold calling zone' was set up in Monkhams ward in 2010 after a series of scams were pulled by conmen who call at people's homes without appointment.

Stickers with advice and helpline numbers were distributed to homes, and signs were put up in the streets to warn criminals that they would find no easy pickings.

But Lori Shearer, 65, of the Monkhams ward neighbourhood watch says the signs have been vandalised and the cold callers are back.

She said: "I answered my door to a young man who said he was an ex-offender and he wanted me to buy something from him.

"When I pointed out that we don't accept cold callers, he said 'I'm going to rob your house and burn it down.' It was a nasty experience."

Geoff Harding, 82, of Monkhams Lane, was targeted by a bogus caller earlier this year.

He said: "I gave a chap £20 to clean my windows.

"He put my name on a list, took the money and said he would be back, but I never saw him again.

"I didn't report it to police and I probably should have.

"The problem has definitely got worse in the last few years and we all need to be more vigilant and less trusting of cold callers."

A new no cold calling zone was launched in Goodmayes in June by the Redbridge Bogus Caller Partnership, which is led by Redbridge Council's trading standards officers.

The partnership claims that the number of distraction burglaries in the areas where the zones operate have fallen from 138 in 2006 to just 33 in 2011.

But Mrs Shearer says she thinks many cold call crimes are going unreported because people do not call the police after being targeted.

At a council Area Two committee meeting last week, Bridge ward councillor Paul Canal proposed holding a special meeting of Woodford Green councillors themed around issues of crime and public safety.

He said: "Over the course of a decade one in three of my residents will be burgled and that is not acceptable."

"It is a war and I think we need to stand up and fight."

• The meeting has been pencilled in for October 2.

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