A meeting of the Ely Cambridgeshire Neighbourhood Watch Association was held on July 15.

The speakers were Scott Colling from Barbell Computing and Simon Cross from East Cambridgeshire District Council's environmental services.

Scott Colling how to keep safe as our technology becomes more sophisticated. He provided lots of useful information how to stay safe online.

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Simon Cross explained how environmental services worked in collaboration with other groups.

He said that statutory nuisance such as noise and unpleasant smells must be persistent, so the occasional noisy party would not qualify, but might come under the heading of anti social behaviour.

Also bonfires are not a nuisance but again could be anti social. He added that treated wood must not be burnt in wood burners,

If you see fly tipping, he said, try to get a photo, dashcam image or car registration.

Due to actions taken by ECDC and the police there has been a gradual reduction of waste dumping. He advised that a reputable waste disposal firm should be employed for waste disposal.

Stray dogs and cats can be identified by the implanted chips – both dogs and cats should be chipped. They do not have a pest control officer, but can recommend actions to be taken. Note that bird feeders can encourage rats.

New members to the Neighbourhood Association are always welcome and the group can be contacted via Facebook.