A NUMBER of burglaries to outbuildings in rural areas of West Somerset should act as a reminder about the importance of property marking and securing valuable tools and machinery, police said.

Neighbourhood policing Sgt Jon O’Connor said officers had been visiting local farms and would be engaging in a dedicated week of action alongside the force’s rural crime team to ‘target harden’ rural properties to prevent them becoming victims of crime.

Sgt O’Connor said police always encouraged people to report any incidents where it appeared individuals were scoping out properties or where they had been encountered in suspicious circumstances.

He said early intervention work would also continue with young people as schools returned to safeguard those most at risk of criminal behaviour or exploitation.