Date posted: October 21, 2025
Dear NeighboursSince our last CPNW newsletter in July it has been relatively quiet in terms of crime, with just two incidents reported in August and none since.
Crime Incidents
In the first case, a vehicle was broken into between 5 and 6 am on Friday 8 August. Unfortunately, a bag containing a significant amount of cash, which had been inadvertently left in the cubbyhole, was taken. CCTV footage around this time showed a male on a bicycle exiting the area with what looked like the bag of cash, but no suspect has been apprehended.
In what seemed a rather frightening incident, on 25 August, a mother and three-year-old child walking on the common were accosted by two women and a man, all three of whom were apparently heavily intoxicated. They had reportedly entered the common from a side street on seeing the mother and child, and approached them shouting and swearing threateningly, seeking anything of value.
Fortunately, passers-by came to assist the mother and child while a Deep Blue Security Patrol Officer managed to detain two of the perpetrators, who were then removed from the area. The third fled and was not seen again.
We hope this latter incident was an isolated one, and that the rapid response sent the message that our neighbourhood is well protected. But it again raises the issue of safety in public open spaces in a country with a growing crime rate. As a community with such large open spaces, both within and on our boundaries, we need to understand that embracing our role in the stewardship of these places will allow us to enjoy them so much more. The more we actively inhabit our natural and recreational areas, and the more we respect and nurture them as extensions of our homes and neighbourhood, the safer and more pleasant living here becomes.
Stewards of the Environment
This not only involves supporting the many groups who work to keep these spaces beautiful, whether through funding, collecting rubbish on a beach walk or picking up after your dog; it also means noticing those who use these spaces, acknowledging one another without being intrusive, and immediately reporting any concerns that may arise.
These spaces are in many ways a barometer of our safety, as they can so quickly turn into places we fear and avoid, particularly as the urban population grows and safe open spaces become scarcer. So, we all have a role to play in looking after them and looking out for one another when using them, particularly during the summer months as they become more populated.
Please help to set a good example by keeping areas pollution free and encouraging others to do the same through your own behaviour and mutual support.
Cameras and Car Guards
Although we cannot possibly cover all these areas with cameras or regular patrols, we are steadily increasing camera coverage of the various parking areas around the common. Furthermore, our initiative to support the beach car guards – who now wear CPNW-endorsed reflective vests that carry their QR-codes thanks to committee member Sean Moolenschoot – seems to have borne fruit.
We are pleased to report that Marlon has recovered well after a health scare, and we are grateful to everyone who offered additional support!
Information for Visitors
Following on from the last newsletter and our appeals to inform visitors of how our community works together, committee member Andy Power has created a flyer that can be given out to guests staying in the area, highlighting the security measures we recommend, safety issues, and practices such as not leaving bins out overnight. It also includes a broad list of emergency numbers. We hope these will be distributed widely to visitors in the coming extended holiday seasons. The aim is to increasingly bring on board all who stay here, even if only briefly, to contribute to the supportive, special community we have all worked so hard to develop!
Committee
We were delighted this month to welcome Sven ten Bokkel Huinink back onto the committee after a long absence. Sven was one of the founding forces behind CPNW back in 2004-2005, and we are delighted that he has now volunteered to act as our CPOF and SAPS Liaison Officer.
WhatsApp Groups
In other matters related to community, it has been pleasing to see how the Noordhoek Community WhatsApp Groups have flourished since being put together under a single “Noordhoek Community” banner! This has really contributed to general awareness about all the good things people do in our neighbourhood and how we can support them, and it has certainly strengthened the Connector Groups.
We are very grateful to Patrick Wright for all the work he does on communications in the Valley, as well as countless other tasks! It is also good to see how we are all learning to work more collaboratively in these groups with a greater understanding of aspects such as social media etiquette, and the limitations of what can be posted when it comes to matters related to the law.
Community Centre
Other good news community-wise is that we have just signed a renewed lease from the City for the Noordhoek Community Centre (NCC) for another 10-year period. Aside from being able to retain this valuable community asset, the centre forms an important part of our revenue stream.
This not only allows us to continually upgrade and maintain the centre, but also to continually upgrade our security assets, such as the camera network. Thank you in particular to Karen McIntyre for all the work she puts into the successful management of the NCC!
AGM – Mark the Date!
Finally, it is AGM time again! We would like to invite you all to join us for our AGM, to be held on 17 November 18h30 for 19h00, followed by a short get-together around the braai. We keep it as brief and to-the-point as possible, so it is never a very late night! Please do set aside the time to join us! We really value your support, not only because it is nice to know our work is seen and appreciated, but also because the more every single neighbour acts in unison, the safer we all are, and the less the hard work lands on a few individuals.
Long in the Tooth!
With some committee members having now served for over 20 years, we are getting rather tired and long in the tooth.
Please do take cognisance of the fact that we, and other community stalwarts, will not be able to keep going forever. But we also don’t want things to slide into some kind of Mexican Standoff, where good things that have taken years to build are allowed to deteriorate to where they were before many of us realised we had no choice but to stand up and do something! It has been heartening to see some really strong and energetic members joining the committee in the past few years.
But we also need others to simply do a little bit of work every month, or to learn and ultimately take over just one small aspect of what has to be a broad and multipronged strategy if it is to succeed. A key principle we try to maintain in CPNW, (also partly responsible for the lack of newsletters in recent months) is that CPNW work must be sustainable in all of our lives.
This is how keeping our neighbourhood safe should be – just a natural and convenient part of our lives! The more you join to help us with that, the less work for us all.
Looking forward to seeing you on 17 November!
The CPNW Committee.
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