As well as a security firm, nightly patrols by residents which started about a week ago had not yet observed any break-and-enters or strange cars lurking, group spokesman David Briggs said yesterday.

Mr Briggs, who last week denied they were a vigilante group, said it was more about keeping an eye on things, not trying to wrangle with any would-be thieves.

A community meeting was held on December 21 in the suburb to discuss escalating crime in the area.

Mr Briggs said the normally quiet suburb had experienced “three or four” recent break-ins, which was why the first meeting had been called, and people were scared to leave their homes unattended.

There was a “high level of stress and concern about the place over the break-ins”, he said.

“It’s not about the statistics, it’s about how it impacts on people,” Mr Briggs said.

“The community as a whole has a right to be concerned and a right for things to be done.

“It’s not just an issue for the police, it’s an issue for the community – it goes back to the court system, education, employment.”

At the first meeting, he said several people who had been broken into were “very supportive of the police”.

“In these sorts of things, there’s no gain in blaming people – it’s a matter of sitting down and seeing what can be done to fix the problem.”

Another meeting would be held within the next two weeks, he said.