THE eyes and ears of the neighbourhood, or just plain old nosey parkers.

Neighbourhood Watch members have been labelled all sorts over the years.

But there’s no denying the scheme, which is approaching its 30th anniversary, is one of the best crime prevention initiatives around.

More than 50,000 households in Hertfordshire think so – because that’s the number signed up to schemes (and other related initiatives, such as Pub Watch and Shop Watch).

That magical barrier was passed during Neighbourhood Watch Week, which ran in the middle of last month, when a further 952 homes joined local schemes.

Hertfordshire Constabulary can now boast a total of 8,675 different watch schemes.

David Aylett, the force’s Neighbourhood Watch project officer, said: “This is a tremendous success for Hertfordshire’s Neighbourhood Watch scheme and in the fight against crime in the county.

“It is testament to the hard work of all those involved, from watch liaison officers to neighbourhood teams to members of the public who are already involved in watches.

“But it also shows that more and more people are recognising the importance of watches as a tool to make their communities even safer by working together, while also helping the police be better informed to beat criminals.”

If you missed out, you don’t need to wait until the next special awareness week to sign up.

Brenda Griffiths, of Hertfordshire Police Authority, said: “Neighbourhood Watch is a round-the-clock, all-year scheme, but it doesn’t work without the support of residents to help make Hertfordshire an even safer place.

“The more there are, the more effective we can be together.

“People can sign up to a watch or even create one any time, so I would like to encourage members of the public to join as soon as they can.”

For more information, speak to your area’s watch liaison officer or go to the Neighbourhood Watch link online at www.herts.police.uk