Information

We decided to introduce this student security section after I took my daughter to her new rental house for her third year at university.
Having spent the previous two years on or around campus accomodation we had always felt quite comfortable about her living away from home.
Suddenly we were being faced with her sharing a rental house in an unknown area of town, miles from university, we were very nervous (obviously she & her flat mates were not).
I insisted in installing some very basic security products to what I thought were the obvious risk areas of the house, these included:
1) A reliable simple wireless alarm (XL Alarm), door and window contacts on the risk locations, remote controls for each person which act as a wireless panic button and simple alarm (student tolerant) operation. The control panel is plugged into a 13-amp socket, the window sensors held on with double sided tape, no problems with the landlord.
2) A window lock on a very risky window (an old wooden frame window,down stairs to the back, not over looked).
3) A Dummy bell siren.
4) An Outside solart lamp.
5) Personel alarms for each person.
Every rental house or flat will have one or two locations that should been seen as the highest risk areas, some will have just one other houses may have 3 or 4, but some very basic affordable precautions will just make the chance of a burglary or worse that much less likely.

We have listed a few tips below taken from the years we spent fitting burglar alarms (most often just after a customer had been victim to a burglary).
1) Ground floor windows, to the rear or side of the property not being overlooked by neigbours or street lighting, we have seen even the smallest of windows used with thieves send small children through who then open a door or window from the inside.
Simple affordable window locks not allowing the window to open (or not by much) will help this situation.

2) Rear or side door not overlooked by neighbours or street lighting, these can be forced or window pains broken to reach in for the keys (often left in the door).
Make sure the locks are good, key not left inside, perhaps one or two additional barrel locks will make a world of difference.

3) Is there an alarm system within the house, or at least a dummy bell box outside.
A simple wireless alarm system can be plugged into a 13-amp wall socket, you can fit just a few sensors (even one) to the risk door or windows making it easy to use and live with. They can also have remote controls which will act as a wireless panic button which is usefull inside a bedroom. Or just a dummy bell box outside the house so it looks like there is an alarm system.

4) Poor or no lighting to the rear or side of the building, even where the kids have to walk from perhaps a garage or bus stop to the house.
Install a solar lamp in minutes that needs no cables, no electrician but will make a big difference.

5) First floor windows near garage roofs, ledges, balcony's, big tree branches, extension roofs can all be very vulnurable to the same extent as ground floor windows.
We have seen the results of scores of burlarys over the years from where a first floor window with easy access has been used to gain access to a property, again some simple affordable products will prevent (or make far less likely) this happening.

6) Personal Alarms: do they own a simple personal alarm for when walking from that bus stop to the house.
A simple personal alarm for just the cost of a pint of beer should always be in the girls handbags or pockets, they can come with built in torches which help when unlocking a door in the dark.

7) Are there entrances that could benifit from a simple decoy CCTV camera ?
A dummy CCTV camera located in the correct position can make potential thieves think twice about approaching from that location, they will not deter everyone but definately will deter some.

Some parents will not have the time or live to far away to visit the accomadation, or perhaps the landlord will not allow any products to be installed onto walls and windows, in these cases there are a selection of simple stand alone products that can help security, these include false food cans for hiding money & keys inside, personal alarms, door wedges, tie on door alarms, etc.

The most likely area of debate will come from the kids not the landlords, if it is like my daughter who took offence to me saying she had chosen a bad location etc etc.
I pointed out to her that it is nothing to do with where the house is, (in fact we get telephone calls from people every day who are living in properties perhaps worth a million pounds that have just been broken into) it is more the fact that these properties are not secured properly and can be a very easy target for a burglary, and I for one didn't want this happening whilst she was perhaps asleep inside, I also reminded her that if her lap top was stolen how much work would she loose that had taken so much effort to do (this part she listened too).

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Need Help?

Need Help?
If you are not sure what products you may require, please see below some basic questions & answers to help you:
Q) Is the property in a high risk location?
A) In our opinion all locations can be high risk, from small town flats to rural farms, it is more to do with how easy is it for a person to gain access to that property than to where it is.

Q) Are there any ground floor windows to the rear or side of the property that are not over looked by neighbours and have poor or no lighting?
A) If there are, these should be secured with either additional locks or alarm sensors.

Q) Are there any first floor windows that have flat roofs, garage roofs, big tree branches, extension roofs near them, especially to the rear or side of the building?
A) If there are, these should also be secured with either additional locks or alarm sensors.

Q) Have the front and rear doors got good locks on them, have they got a secondary lock on them, have they got a key chain on them?
A) If in doubt, we would recommend fitting sometype of additional lock or alarm sensor.

Q) is there an alarm system inside the property or at least a bell box outside?
A) We would recommend at the very least a dummy bell box is fitted outside the property, even better a small wireless alarm system with a few easy to live with detectors perhaps on risk doors and windows, these are powered these days by a 13-amp plug so very easy to install and also have wireless remote controls that include a panic button.

Q) Is there good outside lighting, or is there lighting from perhaps the garage or parking area to the door of the property?
A) If the lighting is poor, we would recommend a simple solar lamp outside which is easy and cheap to install, but gives the security of some lighting.

Q) Do your kids carry personal alarms?
A) They should do, especially girls walking on there own.


Q) Would a dummy CCTV camera located in the correct position be a benifit ?
A) A good dummy CCTV camera located in a position that is perhaps overlooking a dark entrance, or a risk door or window will definately help deter some would be thieves.

Q) You live to far away (perhaps in a different country) to visit your child's accomodation or perhaps the ladlord refuses to allow products to be attached to doors & windows ?
A) We supply a range of products within this section that are totally stand alone security products, these include false food tins to hide money & keys inside, door wedges & tie on door alarms both with built in sirens, personal alarms, handbag alarms, etc, these all help with the security and well being of the students.

Still Confused ?
Please contact us by telephone or email for friendly no obligation advice.