Published on
July 7, 2021
Wandsworth Council invites residents to sign up to the new online watch link app. Users can receive information on local crimes and crime prevention advice directly from the Police and Council.
Information sent by the Metropolitan Police and Wandsworth Council via OWL (Online Watch Link) can now be received using a brand new mobile app. Residents can download it for free and receive a notification as soon as a new message is sent by their local police officers or council community safety officers. Without any registration or login, the public can also view recent information on crimes, appeals and crime prevention advice sent to their local area or anywhere in their borough.
The OWL Messaging Service is already being used by police and council officers in Wandsworth and other London boroughs to send messages directly to registered subscribers by email. It has been used to alert residents of burglaries, vehicle crime, parcel thefts, missing person appeals, distribute invitations to local safer neighbourhood and ward panel meetings and to provide updates on police and council activities in the borough.
With the new app every resident and business can receive instant notifications directly to their mobile or tablet. Simply by downloading the OWL app and opening it, users will receive information based on their current postcode location. The postcode can be changed and multiple nearby zones of interest can be selected if desired. No registration is needed and personally identifiable data is not collected.
The OWL app sends information to users on incidents near to where they live or at their current physical location – if they a are in one of the participating boroughs or counties. By choosing the postcode zones that they are interested in they will receive a notification the moment the police or council send a message to that area. The most important messages regarding crimes and missing person appeals will arrive as instant notifications, while anything less urgent will land inside the app to be read at leisure.
Cllr Jonathan Cook, Chairman of the Wandsworth Safer Neighbourhood Board, said: “With the new app Wandsworth’s residents can receive updates on the go. It’s especially important that our residents can feel informed at a time when restrictions will be eased, and the borough will become busier. The app gives guidance as to what to watch out for, allows residents to share intelligence and it also helps the police catch more offenders.
I’d encourage residents to sign up to this app and help us keep Wandsworth the safest inner London borough. ”
Additional app features:
How to get the OWL app
Search the App Store or Google Play for “owl crime alerts” or use the appropriate link below.
