SmartWater is a colourless odourless liquid that forensically links burglars to crime scenes and stolen property.

It can be used to invisibly mark property and it can be sprayed on offenders if they’re burgling premises, and it is now being used in homes, businesses, schools, churches and other public buildings in Lowestoft.

As part of an initial pilot scheme - the first of its kind in Suffolk - police in Lowestoft have teamed up with Waveney Community Safety Partnership and Waveney Local Strategic Partnership to distribute leaflets to households offering residents the opportunity to have their property marked with the solution free of charge.

If you receive a leaflet you’ll be able to make an appointment to have your valuables - mobiles, cameras, TVs, satellite navigation system, music players, etc - marked up with a special solution which will be unique to you - dramatically increasing the chances of property being returned to you if it is stolen and linking anyone found with the item to the crime.

Meanwhile while many shops and business premises already have spray systems this will now also be used in homes in Lowestoft too.

Get even the smallest amount of SmartWater on you and you’ll be marked - it’s invisible to the naked eye but is virtually impossible to remove.

From today police will carry ultra violet lights to check individuals and property and anyone coming into custody at Lowestoft will be checked as a matter of routine.

Detective Inspector Darrell Skuse said: “In simple terms - burglars won’t know which property has been marked or which home has been equipped with it but if you are sprayed police will be able to tell not only that you’ve committed a burglary but what address you committed it at.”

“If you are found with an item that has been marked we will be able to tell where it has come from, we will be able to reunite it with its rightful owner and you are likely to face a burglary or handling stolen property charge.”

SmartWater doesn’t harm property or those sprayed but the liquid bears a chemical code that is unique, permanent and can be traced back to the home it came from.

Funding for the initiative has come from Waveney Community Safety Partnership, Waveney Local Strategic Partnership and Suffolk Police.

The initiative is being rolled out across the area and you will receive a leaflet giving more information when it reaches your street.