By Becky Kelly BBC News, Merseyside

Mr Newlove had been campaigning to set up a neighbourhood watch

In the run-up to his murder, he had been determined to stop teenagers drinking and vandalising the streets near his home.

The father-of-three led a campaign to set up a neighbourhood watch scheme on Station Road North where he lived.

Cheshire Police revealed that three months before his death, Mr Newlove met officers to discuss youth disorder and the possibility of setting up the home watch group.

A neighbour told the BBC Mr Newlove and another resident on the road had been working hard to get the group running, before he was attacked on 12 August.

He suffered brain damage and died two days later in Warrington Hospital.

Local resident Leanne Dysart said: "It was Garry and another neighbour who were going to set the neighbourhood watch up - they had posted letters out to all houses in the street - and then unfortunately Garry was killed."

'Husband's fears'

The area where Mr Newlove lived was a neighbourhood of neat semi-detached homes and some local authority houses.

Police said lessons need to be learned from Garry's Newlove's murder

But the Fearnhead shops, not far from Station Road, were a draw for gangs of teenagers who drank and smoked.

Community support officers were regularly moving youngsters on from street corners. The area was also home to a number of youngsters who were known to police.

It was soon after the Newlove family moved to the Warrington suburb in 2004 that the sales manager became concerned about a subway where youngsters loitered.

Mr Newlove's wife Helen, 44, said the underpass proved a magnet for gangs that were noisy, drank alcohol and vandalised residents' cars.

Mrs Newlove said: "He had had enough and I was worried - not because I was concerned he would hurt someone, he would never hurt anybody.

"Concrete slabs were smashed, the lights were smashed too, they would destroy anything they could get their hands on."

It has taken something so tragic like this to prompt people into signing up to the neighbourhood watch scheme Local resident

The family's cars were vandalised on four occasions and it was during the last incident, when Mr Newlove went out of the house to speak to a gang who kicked his wife's vehicle, that he was murdered.

Despite his attempts to tackle problems in the area, Mr Newlove's campaign was not well received.

But following his death, neighbours seem determined to carry out his wish.

Another neighbour, who did not wish to be named, recalled how Mr Newlove had asked residents to register for the neighbourhood watch scheme in July.

Only 15 people from Station Road North and two from homes on Edgars Drive - the adjacent road - expressed an interest.

The 35-year-old mother, added: "I think everyone had signed up now. It has taken something so tragic like this to prompt people into signing up to the neighbourhood watch scheme.

Overcome cancer

"We weren't there for each other at that time, now we want to change that because we don't want something like this happening again."

Mr Newlove's wife and daughters Zoe, 18, Danielle, 15, and Amy, 12, had seen him fight and overcome stomach cancer 11 years earlier - he had been given only a 10% chance of survival, but had remained in remission.

You mean the world to me and I wouldn't change you for the world Amy Newlove, Mr Newlove's daughter

On the day he was attacked he had been celebrating after winning a big contract at work.

The family had also been looking forward to a holiday to Lanzarote starting the day after Mr Newlove was killed.

Mr Newlove battled to stay alive in Warrington Hospital for 48 hours after the attack, while his family kept a vigil at his bedside.

His youngest daughter Amy wrote a heartfelt letter.

In it she begged him not to die: "I love you with all my heart so please don't give in.

"I know you can fight this as you are a strong, loving man who I know loves me no matter what.

"I am asking you to be strong and don't give in as I love you too much to believe that you won't go without a fight.

"You mean the world to me and I wouldn't change you for the world.