Neighbourhood Alarm

How can our younger residents be communicating better and faster than the adults?

They recently demonstrated that they can not only reach across estate boundaries, but communicate and organise to meet in large numbers and very quickly.

If the purpose of their gathering in early June around the area of the Johnstown Peoples Park had been harmless, and for something positive, we would have been quite impressed.

Unfortunately we're not impressed, we're outraged, shocked and determined to not let it happen for the same reasons again.

On this particular occasion there was a large number of parents who did not know that they should have been contacting their children that evening to bring them home, away from anti-social behaviour.

A month later it is quite feasible that some residents don't know what took place and missed Facebook lighting up in fury that weekend. The shock wave of worry and anger has not reached them since a large percentage of residents do not use social media or read the Meath Chronicle.

What has become apparent is as parents and fellow residents we need to review how children communicate so easily, take notes, apply some changes, and be able to do the same when we need to get emergency messages out to our residents.

Some Statistics released this year suggest that 36% of Ireland's residents don't use Facebook and of those who do 1 in 4 don't check it daily. The significant majority of users are also over 24 yrs old.

N.S.C.U. Page is fast becoming our main notice board for Johnstown and yet it has a reach of 1,200 followers from a population of around 5k to 7k adults. We want it to grow and connect more of Johnstown BUT there's only one way to do this and it's very simple: Join it, Share it and promote it to your local Facebook friends.

Messaging Apps are used far more by under 24 yr olds but they don't use Facebook very much. Instead they’re avid users of Snap Chat, What's App and similar group messaging which is private, direct, instant and ……. lets face it....... anything we’re not using.

Teenagers are also local 'friend collectors' with 100’s to 1,000’s connected. Unlike adults who are more selective, more private and have friends and family connected and usually from much further afield.

Unsurprisingly Snap Chat is used by 39% of Ireland which corresponds well with the 25% of the population being under 18 yr olds. 75% of these check it frequently and each will send dozens to 100’s of daily messages.

We've seen that it is not enough for residents to be alerted to activities using Facebook alone. It's too slow, covers too few people and it’s too easy to miss notices unless you're constantly monitoring it.

We don’t need to invent something new since we already have one system that's tried and tested yet outdated and underused, it covers all age groups, all mobile phone devices, it's instant and usually read immediately too.... The Simple Text Message.

Several estates have now collected mobile phone numbers from their Neighbourhood Watch members with the aim of connecting to the Gardai Text Alert System. With some ground rules set in place about its use coordinators can now send ALARM messages to these members.

Connect up these area coordinators and we have quickly built an emergency warning network.

If another incident occurs then the nearest Neighbourhood Watch coordinator will verify that the Gardai have been notified before sending out a message to all the other area coordinators who in turn will cascade the message across Johnstown. Within minutes Johnstown residents signed up to Neighbourhood Watch will be aware of any dangers.

The exchange of information via this connected group extends to suspicious activity, rogue traders, burglary, theft, accidents and any local emergency.

If you are not connected to a Neighbourhood Watch group then you're not part of this system and therefore unlikely to be alerted in time. Get your neighbours together, form a group, contact the Community Garda and let’s make it known throughout the area that Johnstown has become a no go area for crime.