Picture if you can a Victorian terrace of houses with a lane at the back. It has a locked gate at the end. The back yards of each of the houses in my terrace lead into this lane.

Recently my neighbour kindly replaced my gate with a high gate and a latch and bolt low down so that it can’t be reached by putting an arm over. He made a really good job of it. Trouble is - Val went out through the gate to see a nest of great tits in the big wall that runs along the lane - and the new garden gate swung to with a click.

I was busy in the front of the house and didn’t hear her shouts. My neighbours were out. She had no way back in. Tried the other houses to get attention without success. In the end she entered our other neighbour’s back yard and scrambled over the party wall falling with quite a jolt! (We are relieved we took away the pyracantha bush from that part of the yard.)

Now we have pinned back the latch so that whilst you can bolt the gate for security - you are less likely to lock yourself out.

We take all kinds of steps to secure our property. But as Jesus said of the sheep thief there is always the possibility of climbing in “some other way”. Be advised - don’t let your desire for security catch you out. You might have to fit a door bell to the back gate!