A couple of months ago I reported to Dacorum Borough Council about various holes appearing in front of the swings in Croft Meadow. These holes had wildlife mess in them but also somebody was taking advantage of this and placing dog mess in these holes. This was obviously a concern and the Dog Warden has taken care of this now, but during this I requested a new dog litter bin in the path leading down to Scatterdells Lane. We do not have a bin this end, only one near the top of Croft Lane, and we have a lot of dog walkers heading towards Scatterdells Lane and the woods.
Dacorum Borough Council have come up trumps and we have a nice new dog litter bin at the end of Croft Meadow, I would like all the villagers to know about this new bin because it must be used, apparently dog bins are monitored weekly and if they are not used enough they are removed, that would be a shame. I had nagged them for a while and am really pleased with the outcome, so could you please put a small editorial in to all dog walkers, the more villagers know the better.
Anita Ward anita@wardchipperfield.co.uk

My cat was attacked and killed by my neighbourÕs dog just two weeks before Christmas. The dog is an ex-racing greyhound now kept as a ÔpetÕ. It has previously killed, yet despite this it was unmuzzled at the time of the attack outside my home. What makes it particularly shocking is that, despite contact from the RSPCA and local dog warden, and pleas from me, the owner refuses to muzzle or control the dog and it continues to walk freely around the village. IÕd like to stress that I have no desire for a vendetta against this man, but I think that villagers should be aware that there is an irresponsible dog owner in their midst.
Lin Johnston

I would like to bring to your attention that the information printed in the December issue of Chipperfield News, regarding the ability of a cash machine to recognise a reversed PIN and alert police is, in fact, totally false. The technology does exist, but isn’t in place either here or in the US. It’s hard to imagine how the police could respond quickly enough to catch the crime in progress anyway.
If anyone is unfortunate enough to be robbed while using a cash machine, the safest option is to comply and then report the incident directly to the police and to the bank. Trying to use an incorrect PIN may frustrate a would-be robber and will not alert the police.
The best advice is to obtain cash from well lit and protected areas where ever possible. Karen Cunningham

I have just read your article in the December issue of Chipperfield News about reversing one’s pin number.
I thought it sounded brilliant but after checking it out on www.snopes.com/business/bank/
pinalert.asp I see it is reported as false. The snopes article makes for interesting reading. Shame, like you, I thought it was a good piece of information.
Jennie Sylvester

Editor’s Note: We received this information from a very reliable source and it was published in good faith. We are very grateful to Karen and Jennie for bringing the matter to the attention of our readers.